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Jonathan Zimmerman, Opinion contributor Published 1:09 p.m. ET March 11, 2021 | Updated 1:38 p.m. ET March 11, 2021

Dr. Seuss can open the discussion of racism with your children.

In 1951, childrens author Jerrold Beim published a short book called "The Swimming Hole." It described two groups of boys one white, one Black who frolic together in the water. Refusing to swim with the Black boys, a white kid receives a nasty sunburn and eventually a stern rebuke from his peers. Suppose we would refuse to play with you now because your face is red? they ask him.

"The Swimming Hole" sparked outrage across the segregated South, where it was frequently banned from schools. So was "The Rabbits Wedding" which described the nuptials of a Black hare and a white one and even a new edition of "The Three Little Pigs." The revised edition portrayed a Black pig as better than a white one, which offended the delicate sensibilities of white people below the Mason-Dixon line.

Ive been thinking about this history during the recent debate over Dr. Seuss, born Theodor Seuss Geisel. Recently, the company that oversees his estate announced that it would end publication and licensing of six books by Dr. Seuss that portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong.

But its hurtful to remove them from the public square, which is the goal of censors everywhere.They think we can't recognize the "problematic" aspects of Dr. Seuss, so we must be shielded from him. And they're wrong about that.

Books by Theodor Seuss Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, including "On Beyond Zebra!" and "And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street," on March 2, 2021, in Chicago.(Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Yes, his booksinclude blatantly racist caricatures and stereotypes: an Asian person holding chopsticks, barefooted Africans wearing grass skirts, and so on. Before he died in 1991, Seussactually altered some of the drawings to make them less objectionable. In the Asian illustration, for example, he removed the figures pigtail, changed its yellow skin tone, and altered the accompanying text to read Chinese instead of Chinaman.

But the illustration still offends, which raises an obvious question: why didnt the publishers alter it again or simply remove it? We dont know, but we can guess the answer: to satiate Dr. Seuss critics. Censors dont aim to strike a word here, and a picture there; they want to obliterate a work of literature altogether, so nobody sees it.

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And that never works in America, where authors often become more popular when someone tries to shut them down. A few days after the announcement that six Dr. Seuss books would no longer be published, four of themshot into Amazons list oftop 20 best-sellers.All told, 13 of the 20 books were by you guessed it Dr. Seuss.

The moral of the story?Americans dont want to be told what they can and cant read. And, most of all, they want to make up their own minds instead of letting someone else do it for them.

Thats the deepest fear of the censor, in all times and places: that readers will get the wrong idea. In the segregated South, whites worried that kids who encountered The Swimming Hole would decide that racism was wrong. And now theres a fear that children who read Dr. Seuss will become racists themselves.

But children and their parents are wiser than that. Writing last year, African-American blogger Danielle Slaughter argued that Dr. Seuss her young son's favorite authorwould help her teach him about racism. Dr. Seuss wrote books that indicted discrimination (most famously, "The Sneetches")but he also engaged in his own forms of it, Slaughter noted. It was complicated. And so is America, especially when it comes to race.

Choosing to throw away his books doesnt make you any less racist, Slaughter wrote, explaining why she continued to read Dr. Seuss with her family. It does, however, make you the type of person who insists on talking about racism in hushed tones.

The real question is whether we trust each other enough to have that talk out loud. Last week, the childrens author Deborah Hautzig acknowledged the racismin Dr. Seuss books but insisted that theyshould remain available to everyone. Hautzig recalled that her first novel, "Hey, Dollface," was banned in schools and libraries across the South when it appeared in 1978 because of its frank exploration of teenage female sexuality.

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Children are smart, Hautzig wrote. They have every right to see, examine, challenge, and reject racism for themselves, and to have it pointed out and vehemently rejected by the adults who read to them.

No matter its source or its goal, censorship always betrays a lack of faith in human beings. We don't have to tuck Dr. Seuss away in a corner. We can talk about him, the good and the bad: his light spirit of whimsy, and the dark racism that marred it. We are better than the censors think we are.

Jonathan Zimmerman teaches education and history at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the co-author (with Signe Wilkinson) of Free Speech, and Why You Should Give a Damn, which will be published next month by City of Light Press.

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Read more:
Why we shouldnt censor Dr. Seuss: Parents and their children are wise - USA TODAY

Film distributors in Russia have attempted to censor the gay romanceSupernova by removing scenes of two men having sex, and scrubbing the film of references to the two leads being a gay couple.

The Moscow Times reports that DTFa series of Russian blogsdocumented that at least one scene where the characters try to have sex after a dramatic dialogue has disappeared from the story. The paper further reports that DTF commentators said the gay relationship is still obvious, even with the edits.

Related:WATCH: Supernova star Stanley Tucci weighs in on straight actors playing gay (and he should know)

Apparently, the distributor for the film in Russia, World Pictures, imposed the edits without the input of the filmmakers. They feared that Russias harsh anti-gay propaganda laws could open up the company to government oppression. Further reports state that World Pictures had also instructed critics not to make any reference to the leadsplayed by Colin Firth and Stanley Tuccias couple, or to use the word gay in reviews.

In a delightful twist, however, attempts to censor the film have also backfired. Critics commented that removing overt references to the couples sexuality actually makes the film even more touching.

Now the Russian version of Supernova even more clearly shows the huge social gap between us and the conventional West, critic Yefim Gugnin wrote in his review. The distributors, unwittingly, made this love story even more poignant, even thinner, removed it into a subtext, which, as you know, is stronger than any open text.

In recent years, Russia has launched a harshand at times, violentcampaign against what the nation deems homosexual propaganda. LGBTQ activists in the country and surrounding nations are subject to intimidation, torture and death. As such, a number of western films dealing with homosexuality have also undergone heavy censorship, includingRocketman, Onward and Avengers: Endgame.

Read more from the original source:
Russian censors tried to cut the gay out of Supernova. It didnt work. - Queerty

This story was originally published by the Missouri Independent.

During a recent hearing on his bill to establish the Stop Social Media Censorship Act, state Rep. Jeff Coleman repeatedly referenced experts sitting behind him in the audience who would be better able to address questions about the legislations legality.

The first of these experts to testify was Chris Sevier, an Iraqi war veteran, Tennessee attorney and advocate who has pushed anti-LGBTQ and anti-porn legislation in statehouses across the country and was deemed a security concern in the Missouri Capitol two years ago.

Sevier may be best known for suing states that wouldnt recognize his marriage to his laptop a move to protest gay marriage. Hes also made headlines for past legal issues, including being charged with stalking and harassing country music singer John Rich and a 17-year-old girl.

Sevier later pleaded guilty to reduced charges of misdemeanor harassment.

In 2011, Seviers Tennessee law license was moved to disability inactive status due to being presently incapacitated from continuing to practice law by reason of mental infirmity or illness.

Meanwhile, Sevier has been connected to controversial legislative efforts across the country for years often leaving uneasy interactions in his wake.

Last month, Sevier was escorted by security out of the Oklahoma Capitol after an altercation with a lawmaker. Three years ago in Rhode Island, a state senator withdrew a bill pushed by Sevier, citing its dubious origins.

After Missouri Senate Administrator Patrick Baker sent an email to senators and staff with a photo of Sevier and the subject line security concern in 2019, Sevier filed a federal lawsuit against him alleging defamation. The lawsuit was dismissed the same month.

The Stop Social Media Censorship Act is the latest of his legislative initiatives to find its way to Missouri.

Social media posts and draft legislation uploaded online indicate Sevier has crafted versions of the bill, in addition to a handful of others, for all 50 states. Hes also been working to find lawmakers to sponsor his bills since the fall.

Coleman, R-Grain Valley, said Sevier first approached him in late October or early November after seeing Colemans public complaints about social media censorship.

The bill would allow Missourians whose political or religious speech is censored on large social media platforms to bring lawsuits against those companies. Opponents argue the legislation is unconstitutional and would impede platforms ability to remove objectionable content, while supporters say its necessary to give users a voice.

He asked me to carry that bill, and I agreed to it, Coleman said, later adding: In general, I think its a very good bill, because we have to figure out something in order to stop whats going on.

When reached by phone by The Independent Tuesday afternoon, Sevier said, You can kiss my ass, before hanging up.

Coleman, who was elected in 2018, said he had previously never heard of Sevier.

As a legislator, youve got so many things going on, so many bills youre trying to keep up with, you really dont have time to do a background check on someone, Coleman said.

But after learning of Seviers past following his testimony at last months committee hearing, Coleman said he is moving forward without Seviers input and working to refine the bill.

He seems like a nice enough guy. But theres enough out there thats a concern that we dont have him helping us anymore, Coleman said, later adding: We dont need those distractions, because this is an important issue. We want to make sure that thats the issue, not him.

Rep. Dottie Bailey, R-Eureka, is also sponsoring a version of the Stop Social Media Censorship Act. Bailey could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.

Read more here:
Man Who Tried to Marry His Laptop Wrote 'Censorship' Bill for Missouri Rep - Riverfront Times

To The Eagle:

Excuse me sir, I did not suggest restricting free speech. I advocated separating the wheat from the chaff. I prefer to see printed here, items of quality. Naturally, what one considers trash, another might consider to be treasure.

Our opinion forum has limited space. Only so many words will fit. When the editor sets my opinion aside so that anothers might be published instead, that is not censorship. That is editorial discretion. Ive suggested that our editors discretion should favor civility over derision and facts over fantasy.

Websters more accurate definition of Fascism is A political movement, philosophy or regime that exalts nation and race above the individual, in a centralized autocratic form of government, headed by a dictatorial leader, with suppression of any opposition. That also sounds like Trumpism to me.

Having tasted the power of the presidency and faced with losing it, Trump made a desperate fascist grab for unlimited power, but his attempted White House coup failed. God bless America.

Grace Ling

Puget Island

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Not censorship but editorial discretion - The Wahkiakum County Eagle - The Wahkiakum County Eagle

Censorship and surveillance in Tibet have reached unprecedented levels further escalating the violation of the Tibetan peoples fundamental rights, president of Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) Lobsang Sangay said on Wednesday.

Sixty-two years ago, on this day (Tibetan National Uprising Day), thousands of Tibetans in Lhasa rose in unison to protest against occupying Chinese regime.

Heavily fortified in a digital cage, Sangay said, it is near impossible to get information out of Tibet.

This past January, we received news of the self-immolation protest by 26-year-old Shurmo from Driru Shagchukha village, five years after the event. This sheds light on the extent of information control and surveillance being carried out in Tibet, he said.

Sangay said that on December 24, 2020, authorities in the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) announced criminal prosecutions against individuals who use online communication tools to split the country and undermine national unity.

It is not surprising, the 52-year-old exiled leader said, that China has been listed as the worst internet abuser in the world in Freedom Houses 2020 report on internet freedom.

Similarly, China is ranked at the near bottom at 177th in the 2020 World Press Freedom Index, compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), he said.

Today, Chinas tentacles have reached beyond Tibet by using its growing economic clout to jeopardise global democracy, according to Freedom House, added Sangay.

The political heir of the Dalai Lama said China conducts the most sophisticated, global, and comprehensive campaign of transnational repression in the world. It highlights the CCPs efforts to control and pressure Chinese citizens, he said, political dissidents and minority communities such as Tibetans, Uighurs and Hong Kong beyond its borders. The democracies around the globe must come together to thwart such assaults on global democracy.

Over a million Tibetans have lost their lives in the past six decades under Chinese rule. Today, we have come together to collectively mourn this loss, said the Tibetan leader.

But we are also here to mark the undaunted resilience of people in Tibet. Even under the threat of losing their lives, they continue to protest by protecting and preserving our language, our religion, our land, and our identity, he added.

View original post here:
China violating Tibetans rights with heightened censorship, surveillance: CTA - Hindustan Times