Amanda Gorman breaks her silence after it was reported that her poem, “The Hill We Climb” was banned from a Florida school.
During a recent interview, Gorman spoke on the restriction. “My initial reaction was a mix of shock and sadness at the same time,” she said. “One, because I couldn’t understand a reason for rendering this piece as inappropriate for elementary school students, and also because when I wrote “The Hill We Climb,” it was so important for me that young people would see themselves represented in a significant moment in our democratic history. And that the reality of that in that moment would be erased for young people who deserve to see themselves at a place, a station like that. That was just really disappointing.”
The decision for Bob Graham Education Center came after a parent, Daily Salinas, argued that the poem had references of critical race theory and indirect hate messages. Many people are standing behind the decision, however, Gorman has different concerns.
“I’m fine with some parents not liking my poetry. That’s completely within your right,” she said. “But when we get to the situation where that one person’s dislike of my work leads to everyone else not having access to that, that is a huge issue because it encroaches on our freedom to really absorb and love and enjoy literature from where we are.”
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