MIAMI-DADE, Fla. — A school district in Florida has changed the availability of a book by the poet who read at President Joe Biden's 2021 inauguration, after a complaint from one resident.
Amanda Gorman became a household name to millions around the world the moment she finished reading her five-minute poem "The Hill We Climb." That poem has since been printed into a book by the same title.
This week, Miami-Dade Public Schools reclassified the book to be available "as part of the middle grades collection." The district made the same move for two other books that were challenged by one resident, whose complaint did not list their name, and their signature was illegible.
Richard Blanco is a Maine resident and esteemed poet. Having Cuban roots, being raised in Miami, and currently living in Bethel, Blanco read a poem at Gov. Janet Mills' second inauguration in January 2023, and another at the second inauguration of former President Barack Obama in January 2013.
Blanco is also the first and current poet laureate for Miami-Dade.
"I always say, America is like a poem. It's a work in progress. It's a poem that we're still working on all together." Blanco said during a Wednesday interview with NEWS CENTER Maine. "That was part of what I wanted to message in my inaugural poem."
In a copy of minutes from a recent meeting of the district's school materials review committee, the committee stated it reviewed five books: "Countries in the News: Cuba," "Cuban Kids," "Love to Langston," "The ABCs of Black History," and "The Hill We Climb."
The committee decided to keep the first two books as they were normally displayed in the "media center." Of the other three, they wrote the books would be "shelved in the middle school section of the media center."
In their complaint forms, the unknown resident was asked to state what they objected to in the texts.
Of "The ABCs of Black History" they wrote, "CRT and gender ideology."
Of "Cuban Kids," they wrote that they objected to "Indoctrination."
And of "The Hill We Climb," they wrote "Is not educational and have indirectly hate messages. Page 12-13." When asked if they were aware of professional reviews on the material, they answered, "I don't need it." When asked what they believed the function of the material was, they answered, "Cause confusion and indoctrination."
The resident also incorrectly listed Oprah Winfrey as the book's author. Winfrey wrote a forward for the book.
Pages 12 and 13 of "The Hill We Climb" reads:
"We've braved the belly of the beast.
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace,
And the norms and notions of what 'just is'
isn't always justice.
And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it.
Somehow, we do it.
Somehow, we've weathered and witnessed
A nation that isn't broken, but simply unfinished."
Gorman tweeted multiple responses to the complaint and the district's decision.
"So they ban my book from young readers, confuse me with Oprah, fail to specify what parts of my poetry they object to, refuse to read any reviews, and offer no alternatives," she wrote. "Unnecessary book bans like these are on the rise, and we must fight back."
"I'm gutted," she said in a separate statement posted to Twitter. She explained she wrote the poem so that young people could see themselves in this historic moment, and asked others to speak out.
Gorman said her publisher, Penguin Random House, had joined a lawsuit in Florida's Escambia County to challenge book restrictions like this one.
After learning about the school district’s decision, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava Tweeted an invite to Gorman, offering to coordinate a trip so she could read her famous poem in town.
Blanco felt the complaint author's language echoed fears of a certain section of the American population, which is afraid of the country's changing demographics. Those fears, Blanco believed, were misplaced in Gorman's work.
"It's a beautiful American story of the American dream," he said of "The Hill We Climb." "I see nothing offensive in that poem, or even questionable. And, so, this has really hit us hard because this is a celebration of America that's supposed to transcend party lines, right? It's supposed to just be about the very spirit of America."
Kristina Powell directs The Telling Room, a Portland-based publisher of 200 books that hosts school sessions as well. Gorman and Blanco have reviewed and written forwards for Telling Room books.
"For youth to be more successful, historically underrepresented and marginalized identities need to be accurately represented," Powell said during a Wednesday interview at the publisher's office. "And, so, we're actually doing a disservice to our youth."
The American Library Association reported 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022.
It is the highest number in the 20 years the organization had been measuring data, and nearly double the ban attempts from 2021, it said.
We asked Powell if she thinks continued pressure from politicians and parent groups could make publishers shy away from printing books that demonstrate diverse perspectives. Powell didn't hesitate before answering.
"No," she smiled. "Because I think on the flip side, this is empowering other publishers, too."