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I Blame Facebook
Feb. 22nd, 2022 07:35 amWhat's behind the right-wing book-ban frenzy? Big money, and a long-term plan
https://www.salon.com/2022/02/08/whats-behind-the-right-wing-book-ban-frenzy-big-money-and-a-long-term-plan/
In organizing terms, Moms for Liberty, Parents Defending Education and No Left Turn all adhere to a similar formula, as the Guardian noted. In most cases, a parent ostensibly flags a local school for doing something they consider beyond the pale, such as incorporating "controversial" books about gender or sexuality into the curricula. That parent and their allies reach out to one of the aforementioned groups, whose leaders weave the incident into their broader national narrative. To smoothen this process, some groups provide detailed walkthroughs for parents about how to file open records requests, create press releases, file civil rights complaints and petition school boards.
( Read more... )
Anyway, "protecting the children from harmful narratives" is a moot point in the age of smartphones, and I suspect that the real purpose of banning books is to turn progressive-leaning people into caricatures of themselves so that they become walking strawmen. It seems to be working, and there's not much to be done about it save to stay off social media.
https://www.salon.com/2022/02/08/whats-behind-the-right-wing-book-ban-frenzy-big-money-and-a-long-term-plan/
In organizing terms, Moms for Liberty, Parents Defending Education and No Left Turn all adhere to a similar formula, as the Guardian noted. In most cases, a parent ostensibly flags a local school for doing something they consider beyond the pale, such as incorporating "controversial" books about gender or sexuality into the curricula. That parent and their allies reach out to one of the aforementioned groups, whose leaders weave the incident into their broader national narrative. To smoothen this process, some groups provide detailed walkthroughs for parents about how to file open records requests, create press releases, file civil rights complaints and petition school boards.
( Read more... )
Anyway, "protecting the children from harmful narratives" is a moot point in the age of smartphones, and I suspect that the real purpose of banning books is to turn progressive-leaning people into caricatures of themselves so that they become walking strawmen. It seems to be working, and there's not much to be done about it save to stay off social media.
