Nova Scotia has a network of all the public libraries outside of the Halifax Regional Municipality; it’s a recent innovation, and I love it. This morning there were 3 holds on 2 copies of “Stoner,” by John Williams on the library network. There are now 4.
Thank you cousins Paul and Ira for a fine interview and a promising reading list.
Picked up a copy this afternoon from Take Cover Books, Peterborough. Timing was good as it led to a conversation with one of the owners. Of course, not possible if ordered on-line.
While listening to this excellent piece, I could not help recalling the CBC’s list of “banned words”, and what happened to a CBC journalist when, in an in-house meeting, she referred to the title of Pierre Valliere’s book, that was much discussed when I was an undergraduate in the 1960s. Which, I guess, I better not identify here, lest readers be offended. But I too, once read, with great profit, Orwell’s journalism from the 30s and 40s – which was also a time when ideology permeated the English language and was driven by a political agenda.
Moreover, I did a lot of that reading in a building that was built with white African and Rhodesian money, for “white commonwealth students” – so it really was a product of colonialism, and of conquest, and exploitation. Although it is also worth noting that this “colour bar” was struck down by the British courts in 1948 – long before there was “human rights legislation” in Ontario, let alone the current oddities of DEI.
The question is what, if anything, can be done by “ordinary people” when educational institutions (and the hierarchy of teacher unions) are so dominated by people for whom terms like “de-centering” or “heteronormative” are not only common, but are also an obligatory component of a political catechism to which, it is thought, all must adhere.
That is, when education becomes explicitly a forum for indoctrination – no doubt animated by the Jesuitical notion that if young minds are captured early enough, then they are captured for life.
In theory, elected school boards are supposed to inject a public and “consumer” input into education; but do they, and if not why not? I wonder whether “party labels” for these elected positions would change the context or the outcome? Perhaps producing fewer commissars.
As a former teacher who often fought the weeding process (and who took weeded books into my room for my class library), I found this fascinating. 35 years ago, the employment equity committee on my staff set about this process. I was never sure how books in the library were related to employment equity but that is another story. They ended up pulling books that showed women in traditional roles. While I was, and am, all for showing that all roles, all colours, all sexes, all genders are valuable, I was struck by one of our female teachers asking if we couldn’t keep at least a couple of traditional books as that too was a valid choice.
Books like To Kill a Mockingbird or Huckleberry Finn were guiding lights for me as I learned about racism. There are wonderful new books dealing with gender and sexual preferences that need to be in schools. But the old books still need to be available.
And I also know that if I ever was told I couldn’t read a book, the first thing I did was read it. In fact, I sometimes told reluctant readers they couldn’t read something which got them reading immediately.
I loved the discussion about books online, and I know kids read things like game cheats all the time. But I am with Jean Luc Picard and the comfort gained baby having a book in your hands, in a comfy chair, with a cup of coffee and a dog beside you. May books last forever.
Bonjour M. Wells. J ai eu récemment une discussion avec des connnaissances anglophones sur ce en quoi consiste l’identité canadienne en excluant le volet francophone par rapport à l’identité des citoyens des EU. Il me semble que la différence est plutôt mince sauf pour les institutions(pas si sur lorsque certaines personnes plaident le XX amdt en court de justice) le drapeau et l Hymne national. Qu’en pensez-vous ?
Thank you for this interview! It was so relevant and clear. No wonder book banning proponents don't want any old books in the library; kids would learn about what happened to books in WWII and fight back!
Nova Scotia has a network of all the public libraries outside of the Halifax Regional Municipality; it’s a recent innovation, and I love it. This morning there were 3 holds on 2 copies of “Stoner,” by John Williams on the library network. There are now 4.
Thank you cousins Paul and Ira for a fine interview and a promising reading list.
Picked up a copy this afternoon from Take Cover Books, Peterborough. Timing was good as it led to a conversation with one of the owners. Of course, not possible if ordered on-line.
Books are bad..Ban all books, kids might learn about history and culture. Let them spend hours on social media where the real truth is.
While listening to this excellent piece, I could not help recalling the CBC’s list of “banned words”, and what happened to a CBC journalist when, in an in-house meeting, she referred to the title of Pierre Valliere’s book, that was much discussed when I was an undergraduate in the 1960s. Which, I guess, I better not identify here, lest readers be offended. But I too, once read, with great profit, Orwell’s journalism from the 30s and 40s – which was also a time when ideology permeated the English language and was driven by a political agenda.
Moreover, I did a lot of that reading in a building that was built with white African and Rhodesian money, for “white commonwealth students” – so it really was a product of colonialism, and of conquest, and exploitation. Although it is also worth noting that this “colour bar” was struck down by the British courts in 1948 – long before there was “human rights legislation” in Ontario, let alone the current oddities of DEI.
The question is what, if anything, can be done by “ordinary people” when educational institutions (and the hierarchy of teacher unions) are so dominated by people for whom terms like “de-centering” or “heteronormative” are not only common, but are also an obligatory component of a political catechism to which, it is thought, all must adhere.
That is, when education becomes explicitly a forum for indoctrination – no doubt animated by the Jesuitical notion that if young minds are captured early enough, then they are captured for life.
In theory, elected school boards are supposed to inject a public and “consumer” input into education; but do they, and if not why not? I wonder whether “party labels” for these elected positions would change the context or the outcome? Perhaps producing fewer commissars.
This book must be in every school library and all public libraries. Submit it and see what happens!
As a former teacher who often fought the weeding process (and who took weeded books into my room for my class library), I found this fascinating. 35 years ago, the employment equity committee on my staff set about this process. I was never sure how books in the library were related to employment equity but that is another story. They ended up pulling books that showed women in traditional roles. While I was, and am, all for showing that all roles, all colours, all sexes, all genders are valuable, I was struck by one of our female teachers asking if we couldn’t keep at least a couple of traditional books as that too was a valid choice.
Books like To Kill a Mockingbird or Huckleberry Finn were guiding lights for me as I learned about racism. There are wonderful new books dealing with gender and sexual preferences that need to be in schools. But the old books still need to be available.
And I also know that if I ever was told I couldn’t read a book, the first thing I did was read it. In fact, I sometimes told reluctant readers they couldn’t read something which got them reading immediately.
I loved the discussion about books online, and I know kids read things like game cheats all the time. But I am with Jean Luc Picard and the comfort gained baby having a book in your hands, in a comfy chair, with a cup of coffee and a dog beside you. May books last forever.
Bonjour M. Wells. J ai eu récemment une discussion avec des connnaissances anglophones sur ce en quoi consiste l’identité canadienne en excluant le volet francophone par rapport à l’identité des citoyens des EU. Il me semble que la différence est plutôt mince sauf pour les institutions(pas si sur lorsque certaines personnes plaident le XX amdt en court de justice) le drapeau et l Hymne national. Qu’en pensez-vous ?
Thank you for this interview! It was so relevant and clear. No wonder book banning proponents don't want any old books in the library; kids would learn about what happened to books in WWII and fight back!