Poet Amanda Gorman 'gutted' after her inauguration poem is banned

Poet Amanda Gorman 'gutted' after her inauguration poem is banned Joan McCarter, author by Joan McCarter for Daily Kos Daily Kos Staff Wednesday, May 24, 2023 at 11:11:25a EDT WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman speaks at the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. During today's inauguration ceremony Joe Biden becomes the 46th president of the United States. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images) Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman speaks at the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 20, 2021 Poet Amanda Gorman has a message for the Miami-Dade school that removed “The Hill We Climb,” the poem she wrote for President Joe Biden’s inauguration, from the elementary student section: She will fight this and all book bans and she’s not alone. “Together, this is a hill we won’t just climb, but a hill we will conquer,” she said in a statement about the ban. Bob Graham Education Center, which teaches kindergarten through eighth grade students, removed Gorman’s poem from the shelves for elementary students on the basis of one complaint from a far-right activist with documented ties to white supremacist and insurrectionist groups. This is the passage the parent, Daily Salinas, highlighted in her complaint as proof the poem “is not educational and have indirectly [sic] hate messages.” This is the “hate” message: We've braved the belly of the beast, We've learned that quiet isn't always peace, and the norms and notions of what just is isn't always just-ice. And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it. Somehow we do it. Somehow we've weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken, but simply unfinished “I’m gutted,” Gorman wrote in a statement released on Twitter. “I wrote The Hill We Climb so that all young people could see themselves in a historical moment,” and, “Ever since, I’ve received countless letters and videos from children inspired by The Hill We Climb to write their own poems. Robbing children of the chance to find their voices in literature is a violation of their right to free thought and free speech.” She’s gutted, but she’s fighting back, she said—along with her publisher, Penguin Random House, other authors, the nonprofit PEN America (which fights censorship and book bans), and community members. They are all suing Florida’s Escambia County to challenge book restrictions. The 25-year-old Gorman, who is Black and who is most definitely not Oprah, pointed out in her statement that “Most of the forbidden works are by authors who have struggled for generations to get on the bookshelves. The majority of these censored works are by queer and non-white voices.” Statistics from the American Library Association prove that claim. In 2022, the American Library Association documented a record-breaking number of reported book ban attempts across the country. The organization found 1,269 demands to censor or restrict library materials or resources, the highest total since it began compiling this data more than 20 years ago. More than 2,571 unique titles were targeted, with the majority of the books being written by or about LGBTQ characters or people of color. Gorman was the unquestioned star of President Biden’s inauguration, reciting the poem she wrote immediately following the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Here is her remarkable performance from that day. When day comes we ask ourselves, where can we find light in this never-ending shade? The loss we carry, a sea we must wade. We've braved the belly of the beast, We've learned that quiet isn't always peace, and the norms and notions of what just is isn't always just-ice. And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it. Somehow we do it. Somehow we've weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken, but simply unfinished. We the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president only to find herself reciting for one. And yes we are far from polished. Far from pristine. But that doesn't mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect. We are striving to forge a union with purpose, to compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and conditions of man. And so we lift our gazes not to what stands between us, but what stands before us. We close the divide because we know, to put our future first, we must first put our differences aside. We lay down our arms so we can reach out our arms to one another. We seek harm to none and harmony for all. Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true, that even as we grieved, we grew, that even as we hurt, we hoped, that even as we tired, we tried, that we'll forever be tied together, victorious. Not because we will never again know defeat, but because we will never again sow division. Scripture tells us to envision that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree and no one shall make them afraid. If we're to live up to our own time, then victory won't lie in the blade. But in all the bridges we've made, that is the promise to glade, the hill we climb. If only we dare. It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit, it's the past we step into and how we repair it. We've seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it. Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy. And this effort very nearly succeeded. But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated. In this truth, in this faith we trust. For while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us. This is the era of just redemption we feared at its inception. We did not feel prepared to be the heirs of such a terrifying hour but within it we found the power to author a new chapter. To offer hope and laughter to ourselves. So while once we asked, how could we possibly prevail over catastrophe? Now we assert, How could catastrophe possibly prevail over us? We will not march back to what was, but move to what shall be. A country that is bruised but whole, benevolent but bold, fierce and free. We will not be turned around or interrupted by intimidation, because we know our inaction and inertia will be the inheritance of the next generation. Our blunders become their burdens. But one thing is certain, If we merge mercy with might, and might with right, then love becomes our legacy, and change our children's birthright. So let us leave behind a country better than the one we were left with. Every breath from my bronze-pounded chest, we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one. We will rise from the gold-limbed hills of the west. We will rise from the windswept northeast, where our forefathers first realized revolution. We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the midwestern states. We will rise from the sunbaked south. We will rebuild, reconcile and recover. And every known nook of our nation and every corner called our country, our people diverse and beautiful will emerge, battered and beautiful. When day comes we step out of the shade, aflame and unafraid, the new dawn blooms as we free it. For there is always light, if only we're brave enough to see it. If only we're brave enough to be it. Daily Kos Relies on Readers Like You Daily Kos doesn't rely on a billionaire backer or corporate conglomerate to cover our budget expenses. Our largest source of revenue is community donations; we rely on our readers and activists donating what they can to help us make ends meet. You can support progressive, independent news by donating $5 to Daily Kos right now. 3 TAGS #Inauguration #JoeBiden #AmandaGorman 2 GROUPS REPUBLISHED Daily Kos Black Kos Community Was this story worth reading? Recommending stories helps us decide which stories are most important to show our readers. Recommend Story 268 149Comments Join the Discussion Your Ancestors Might Be Far From What You'd Expect : Take A Look Genetics Digest | Sponsored Simple Japanese Trick for Nail Infection Healthy Guru | Sponsored Read More Everyone In Michigan Is Talking About This Shower Replacement Fast 1-2 day shower remodel is becoming very popular with homeowners. They come with a lifetime warranty, and are affordable for everyone. 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