This week marks Banned Books Week, an annual effort promoted by the American Library Association to bring awareness to literary censorship. In recognition of the event, The Onion takes a look at the history of book bans in the United States. 1788: The forward-thinking founding fathers preemptively crack down on socialist subversion by banning The […]
  • solsangraal@lemmy.zipEnglish
    22·
    2 months ago

    they’re making a joke of it, but book bans are getting out of control. small libraries really are having to go “adults only” because of the impossible restrictions the new GOP library boards are imposing. project 2025 aims to force anyone who disseminates unauthorized material (basically whatever the fuck the party wants) to become a registered sex offender.

    next steps will be to impose “approval boards” (censorship boards) for books before they even go to print or be published. when they’re done with books, they’ll move on to videos.

    LGBTQ+ and anti-racist materials are only the starting point. when they’re done eradicating those, they’ll move on to anything that’s critical of any part of the GOP ideology. anything that doesn’t cast the GOP, trump, unfettered unregulated capitalism, white people, “it’s not rape if he’s your husband,” and on and on and on in a positive light–will never see the light of day.

    “it can’t happen here!”

    it IS happening here

  • moistclump@lemmy.worldEnglish
    8·
    2 months ago

    1996: Librarians are pressured to take Harry Potter books off the shelves due to the nation having a bad gut feeling about J.K. Rowling.