A school district in Missouri goes after the prize-winning graphic novel

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Jun 14, 2023
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** ‘Maus’ Trapped Again: Now in Missouri
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Art Spiegelman was shocked last year to learn that Maus, his memoir about the Holocaust, was banned in Tennessee over concerns it contained “sexually explicit” material. Now it’s under review in a school district in Missouri for the same reason. In an interview with PEN America, Spiegelman talked about the rise of fascism and the need to push back on censorship.

Read the interview >> ([link removed])
Tell the Missouri school district that Maus belongs on shelves >> ([link removed])

PEN DEFENDS
What is a Book Ban?

PEN America’s Jonathan Friedman responds to the semantic gamesmanship of those who deny that restricting access to books like Amanda Gorman’s inaugural poem, The Hill We Climb, is anything other than a ban. “The point is not whether one can get a book that’s been prohibited in a school; it’s about whether someone’s ready access to ideas has been denied or diminished in a public institution and why,” he wrote.

Read the op-ed in USA Today >> ([link removed])
Ta-Nehisi Coates Memoir Banned for Making White Kids ‘Ashamed’
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An AP language student in South Carolina, assigned to read Ta-Nehisi Coates, instead wrote to the school board that the class made them feel “ashamed to be Caucasian." The school board banned the book. PEN America's Jeremy C. Young called the removal of the book "an outrageous act of government censorship."

See what Coates told us about seeking comfort >> ([link removed])
Read our statement about the removal of Coates' book >> ([link removed])

PEN UNITES











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PEN READS
Literature’s Next Emerging Voices
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For the 27th year, we are welcoming 12 fellows in our nonpareil Emerging Voices program. They are authors from varied backgrounds and experiences elected from the largest applicant pool in the program’s history. Each fellow has been paired with a mentor to work closely on their craft. Over the five-month-long immersive, virtual program, fellows have access to creative writing workshops, publishing professionals, and business workshops.

Meet the 2023 mentors and fellows >> ([link removed])
Spotlight on PEN Members

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The Questionable Ones by Judith Keller, translated from German by PEN America member Tess Lewis, offers familiar yet absurd portraits of passers-by, fellow passengers on the tram, the unemployed and the overemployed, the innocent and the suspicious, young mothers and confused elderly. With quirky humor and wry insight, these micro-fictions unravel the fabric of daily life.

Check out The Questionable Ones >> ([link removed])
View other publications by PEN America members >> ([link removed])

PEN SPEAKS
* Amanda Gorman spoke to CNN's Anderson Cooper ([link removed]) about the restriction of her book in Florida and the campaign through PEN America to send letters to the school that restricted The Hill We Climb.
* CEO Suzanne Nossel joined a panel at the National Constitution Center addressing “The State of Free Expression in the U.S. and Abroad.” ([link removed])
* Moira Marquis of our Prison and Justice Writing Program launched an email campaign to stop a proposed New York State policy that would have prevented incarcerated writers and artists from receiving contest awards. Within 24 hours, the directive was halted. She also wrote for LitHub about how to encourage free expression behind bars ([link removed]) .
* PEN America’s Nadine Farid Johnson delivered the keynote address at the 2023 Biblioteksdagarna, a signature cultural summit held in Linköping, Sweden, highlighting ([link removed]) the rise of book bans across the United States and the repercussions of educational censorship for democracies around the globe.
* We mourned the loss of esteemed author Cormac McCarthy, who in 2009 was honored with the PEN/Saul Bellow award for a career ‘in the highest rank of American literature.’

WHAT WE'RE READING
* Midlands teacher’s lesson on racism halted after complaints, citing state law (The State ([link removed]) )
* Hong Kong protest anthem tops iTunes chart after government seeks court ban (Financial Times ([link removed]) )
* Biden administration to appoint anti-book ban coordinator as part of new LGBTQ+ protections (CBS News ([link removed]) )
* How Black women writers got it done (The Nation ([link removed]) )

“We haven’t learned much from the past, but there's some things you should be able to figure out. Book burning leads to people burning.”


** - Art Spiegelman
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TRENDING @ PENAMERICA
Students Stage Public Reading of Amanda Gorman Poem

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The book-loving community rallied around Amanda Gorman and other authors restricted in Miami Lakes, Florida, with a giveaway of 1,200 of the restricted books. One commenter said, “I’m not crying. Okay, yes I’m crying. Thank You Thank YOU for all the good people of Florida who came together for this wonderful event. We can’t let hate or ignorance win!” See the post >> ([link removed])
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