It’s not every day that students’ voices are heard concerning school policy. Indeed, most major decisions in public education are made with little or no student input. But with teacher layoffs pending in school districts across the nation, hundreds students in Los Angeles sought to change that dynamic last Friday, staging a walkout to protest plans to fire more than [...]
The Canturbury Tales, Candide, the Holy Qur’an, The Evolution of Man, and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: all these titles are on the list of books banned at a Catholic high school somewhere in the U.S. But that also means you can find them among the texts of Kat Atreides’ covert lending library, which she runs out of her [...]
We’ve read recently about controversy over YA author Laurie Halse Anderson’s recent novel, Wintergirls, in which a high school girl struggles with anorexia and her friend’s death from the disease. Critics of the book say it serves as a “how-to” guide to anorexia for young people. In related news, school officials at Williamson County Schools in Franklin, Tennessee, have decided [...]
Rebecca Zeidel has been an astute and dedicated* blogger here at NCAC blog. Chairing the Kids' Right to Read Project (a project co-sponsored by NCAC and ABFFE), she's written about book censorship, science censorship, and censorship of youth voices. Today's her last day, so I thought we'd bring out one of her more infamous blog posts: Super sez: ‘TTYL’ has g2g [...]
The New York Times weighed in Tuesday on "libel tourism" and advocated for the Senate bill that would protect U.S. citizens’ First Amendment rights from the more stringent laws of other countries, notably England. Senators Arlen Specter and Joe Lieberman recently introduced the Free Speech Protection Act of 2008 in the U.S. Senate. A bi-partisan effort prompted primarily by concern [...]
The Kids' Right to Read Project opposed the censorship of Jason Tirado’s poem, ‘Diary of an Abusive Stepfather’, in the teen poetry anthology, Paint Me Like I Am by Bill Aquado and Richard Newirth (Harper) in Landis Intermediate School. In May 2009, Principal Don Kohaut literally ripped the pages including the poem from the book after one parent complained. KRRP sent this letter in response to the challenge.
Natalie Jones, a sixth grade student at Mt. Woodson Elementary School, CA was censored earlier this month after her principal and superintendent failed to apply Ramona United School District's policy reasonably and professionally. Natalie was told she would only be allowed to give her independent research project class presentation on Harvey Milk during lunchtime recess and then only to students [...]
The process for developing iPhone applications is simple: you need a catchy idea, a smart programmer (or two, or more) and lots of time. Easy. Once you’re done, you can then submit your application to the Apple store for review. Once accepted, you set a price and start sharing profits with Apple for every app downloaded. And then, [...]
First Amendment jurisprudence celebrates the metaphorical marketplace of ideas. The website craigslist may very well be an actual representation of this metaphor in that it invites users all over the world to share their ideas, sell their used couches, find roommates and advertise other services, including sensual massages and escort services. I think most readers of this blog agree that [...]
The ACLU and the ACLU of Tennessee filed suit in Federal Court against two Tennessee school districts, charging the schools are unconstitutionally blocking students from accessing online information about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues. NCAC was involved in an initial response and has been following the case. Now see the story in flowchart form: See it in full effect [...]
6/23/2009 updated 11/5/2010 — In April 2009, students in Knoxville, Tennessee successfully challenged the Internet filtering policy in place at their school which was blocking access to LGBT websites. After the ACLU filed a lawsuit on the students' behalf, the school districts in question consented to change the filter settings that were unconstitutionally blocking the websites.
A lot is happening in the world of book censorship. Here’s the most up-to-date news… Toni Morrison has been censored from yet another curriculum – this time from an advanced English class in Shelby, Michigan. Superintendent Dana McGrew ordered the teacher to remove Song of Solomon from the classroom. McGrew said her decision “was based on the fact that I [...]
NCAC joined transparency organizations in a letter asking the Senate Rules Committee to hold public hearings on open government issues and to mark-up and pass a resolution that would improve public access to reports by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
NCAC joins groups in calling on the White House to reverse a Bush Administration policy that removed the White House's Office of Administration ("OA") from the list of agencies subject to the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA").
The Inaugural Event of the Free Speech Leadership Council of the National Coalition Against Censorship Wednesday, June 3, 2009, 6:30 to 8:30 PM Hosted by Jane Friedman Awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993, Toni Morrison is the author of many novels, including The Bluest Eye and Beloved, which are widely taught, and frequent targets of censorship [...]
Antonio Finns in the Sun-Sentinel lauds Miss California Carrie Prejean for "defend[ing] free speech rights just beautifully." In the Miss America competition, she showed her support for "opposite" marriage (which we understand as "straight marriage") and not gay marriage. She lost the pageant. And since then, the conversation keeps devolving: with claims that she [...]
It's five, and my Firefox windows is a few tabs away from crashing. Let's go through 'em, shall we? Bristol Palin is now a celebrity spokesperson for the teen pregnancy prevention run by the Candies Foundation. You may have heard of Candies, a tween/teen clothing store which markets the "floral lace thong" for 7-16 year olds. I'd add a link [...]
Debbie Smith’s painting, “See It Go” was selected for inclusion in the year end student art show at Shasta Community College in Redding, CA. Styled on the mid-20th century-era “Dick and Jane” books, it depicts two children playing outdoors and a man wearing an open blue bathrobe exposing his sexual arousal. According to press reports, “in response to [...]
We reported in February about a teacher who was punished for violating the school's academic freedom policy by showing two videos, including The Story of Stuff. Yesterday, the New York Times reported that the video "has become a sleeper hit in classrooms across the nation." The article continues: "[M] any educators say the video is a boon to teachers as [...]
I should have put money on it – or at least Twittered – my Monday prediction that Apple would re-allow the new Nine Inch Nails application into the iPhone Store. The Apple store pulled the application because the application – which had NIN albums – included the controversial album, The Downward Spiral.* Trent Reznor, who’s very internet savvy, first sent [...]
We’ve been covering the challenges to several books in West Bend, Wisconsin, including Geography Club and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Meanwhile, critics there recently called for restrictions on a third book, Baby Be Bop by Francesca Lia Block. The Christian Civil Liberties Union’s Milwaukee branch has, in fact, filed a legal claim, arguing that the plaintiffs (all of [...]
On Tuesday April 28, the Supreme Court handed down a decision in the matter of FCC v. Fox Television Stations, which on its face appears to be hostile to free speech interests. In a 5-4 decision, the Court sided with the FCC, finding that the agency had not been arbitrary or capricious in its sanctioning of Fox Television Stations, Inc. over two instances of live broadcasts where the F- and S- words were uttered. The FCC had determined that these instances of “fleeting expletives” were indecent, but not protected by the First Amendment--- despite a long standing tradition of fleeting instances of indecent content being immune from FCC sanctions. Every cloud has its silver lining, however. This case’s silver lining is that it will ultimately be fantastic for free expression, in that Justice Antonin Scalia, in writing for the majority, declined to make a decision regarding the constitutionality of the FCC’s new policy regarding fleeting expletives, instead sending the case back to the lower court for further deliberation on this issue.
Announcing the 2009 YFEN Film Contest Free Speech in School (Does it Exist?) Film your response in 4 minutes or less. Entries can be videos of any kind, including documentary, animation, experimental, or music video. The top three winners will be awarded cash prizes and the first place winner will receive a scholarship to the New York Film Academy.
