She added: 'The law demands that the Escambia County School District put removed or restricted books back on library shelves where they belong.'

'In a nation built on free speech, this cannot stand.' 'In Escambia County, state censors are spiriting books off shelves in a deliberate attempt to suppress diverse voices. 'Children in a democracy must not be taught that books are dangerous,' Nossel said. Suzanne Nossel, CEO of PEN America, denounced the book removals in a statement announcing the lawsuit. He has leaned heavily into cultural divides on race, sexual orientation and gender as he moves to win support from conservative voters who decide Republican primaries.įlorida has been a leading battleground in the so-called 'culture wars', and scores of books have been removed from library shelves in recent months, deemed inappropriate for children by conservative parents and school boards.

It is my greatest hope that their lives will be the better for it, and I am forever grateful for the honor and the opportunity that Oprah has afforded me.Pictured: The Penguin Random House logo is seen in an office lobby (file photo)įlorida Governor Ron DeSantis, a potential candidate for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, has been a driving force behind a campaign in the southern state to restrict children's access to certain books. Winfrey and her book club, my story will be introduced to a national audience. “My greatest hope at that time was that a few young people would read my story and learn from my mistakes. I wrote That Bird Has My Wings while in solitary confinement, isolated and alone,” he says. “I turned 60 this year, having entered San Quentin at the age 19. Masters had this to say about the selection of his book for Oprah’s Book Club: HarperOne has reissued the book, which contains a foreword by spiritual teacher Pema Chödrön, who has long championed Masters’s cause. Oprah read the book shortly after it was first published by HarperOne, in 2009, and it left a strong impression: “His story, of a young boy victimized by addiction, poverty, violence, the foster care system, and later the justice system, profoundly touched me then, and still does today,” said Oprah. Masters has been incarcerated in California’s San Quentin State Prison for the past 41 years.

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