When I read this piece on book bans by Aaron Blake in the Washington Post back in November, 2021, I chanced upon  this page from the Holocaust archive that should give us pause as today's book banning agenda is not unlike Nazism as you can read about here:

"Beginning on May 10, 1933, Nazi-dominated student groups carried out public burnings of books they claimed were “un-German.” The book burnings took place in 34 university towns and cities. Works of prominent Jewish, liberal, and leftist writers ended up in the bonfires. The book burnings stood as a powerful symbol of Nazi intolerance and censorship. 

The Nazi university student association created blacklists of works by literary and political figures such as Bertolt Brecht, Erich Maria Remarque, and Ernest Hemingway that were to be thrown into the flames.

In the aftermath of the book burnings, the Nazi regime raided book stores, libraries, and publishers’ warehouses to confiscate materials it deemed dangerous or “un-German.”  The Nazi book burnings provoked international criticism from intellectuals and the press. They saw it as a barbaric act that was out of keeping with a modern, civilized society. "

So for Nazis, Bertolt Brecht and Ernest Hemingway were their "pornography" that got thrown into the fire. What is happening in Texas is little different. In fact, the comparison is stunning and the implications, chilling.

Ok students, here is an assignment. Read Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 that depicts an American society where books have been outlawed with "firemen" burning any and all they find. You can listen to it on audiobooks, too. This book is considered one of Ray Bradbury's greatest novels. 

Read it before it appears on the chopping block, too. You can also see the film by the same name on HBO Max.

Makes me want to hug all my books, especially those that have challenged me the most.

-Angela Valenzuela

‘I think we should throw those books in a fire’: Movement builds on right to target books

By Aaron Blake | November 10, 2021 | Washington Post

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in June. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

Perhaps the most infamous quote of the 2021 Virginia governor’s race — and indeed of any 2021 race — belongs to Democrat Terry McAuliffe: “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.”

What many people might not have fully processed is that the quote stemmed from a debate about books in schools. Gov.-elect Glenn Youngkin (R) had attacked McAuliffe for, as governor, vetoing a bill to allow parents to opt their children out of reading assignments they deem to be explicit. The impetus was a famous book from Nobel laureate Toni Morrison, “Beloved,” about an enslaved Black woman who kills her 2-year-old daughter to prevent her from being enslaved herself.

While that effort took place years ago, it was rekindled as a political issue at a telling time. Not only are conservatives increasingly targeting school curriculums surrounding race, but there’s also a building and often-related effort to rid school libraries of certain books.