(NEW YORK)—PEN America, Interlink Publishing, the National Coalition Against Censorship, Authors Against Book Bans, New York Civil Liberties Union, and 25 authors called on the Chappaqua Central School District this week to reverse its ban on Young Palestinians Speak, a nonfiction account of the lives of Palestinian children and teens.
An open letter signed by Young Palestinians Speak authors Anthony Robinson and Annemarie Young, as well as authors Maia Kobabe, Ellen Hopkins, and Kelly Jensen and others, urges the school district to reverse the ban. “The middle school students of Chappaqua Central School District deserve access to diverse literature like Young Palestinians Speak, the same as they have had for years. Books aren’t harmful – censorship is,” the letter states.
In April 2024, Young Palestinians Speak was removed from student access in a middle school library following complaints over its inclusion in an Arab American Heritage Month display. The book has since been moved to the high school, effectively banning it from middle school students in the district. Chappaqua is located in northern Westchester County, N.Y., about 30 miles from New York City.
At the school board meeting on Tuesday, the open letter was read aloud by a parent who, quoting Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop, a noted scholar of multicultural children’s literature, said: “Literature transforms the human experience and reflects it back to us, and in that reflection we can see our own lives and experiences as part of the larger human experience.”
The letter further states: “We find it especially concerning that this book was removed from libraries during Arab American Heritage Month, an opportune time for Palestinian voices to be heard, not censored.”
A separate letter by authors Young and Robinson was also read. They wrote: “Denying the young access to books, especially those about current events, like the Israel-Palestine conflict, is to deny them knowledge and a space to think. It’s denying the value of freedom of thought – a very dangerous road to go down. … Fear of knowledge runs through human history, as do attempts to suppress knowledge – attempts which only work short-term in any case. The consequences of any suppression can be dire.”
PEN America initially wrote to the district about the book’s removal in October, urging the district to reconsider its decision, in order to “protect and respect the rights of all students and parents in your community, and support your district’s library professionals who facilitate students’ freedom to read and learn every day.” The letter also called on the district to follow best practices for reconsiderations and ensure titles are available to students throughout a review process.
The restriction of Young Palestinians Speak occurs as children’s and young adult books depicting Palestinians have been alarmingly targeted for censorship; placed on lists of so-called “biased” books, removed from school curriculum, checked out indefinitely from public libraries by people espousing anti-Palestinian views, and, swept up in the general fervor to ban diverse books in school libraries. Authors of books on this subject have shared experiences of cancelled visits to schools, online doxing and harassment, and their books review-bombed online as well.
In this week’s joint letter, PEN America and other signatories emphasized the importance of students having access to diverse stories in schools: “Forms of suppression and the censorship of ideas at the behest of some ideologies or viewpoints threatens the freedom to read, and puts students’ opportunity to feel seen or learn about difference in jeopardy–things needed now more than ever.”
Since 2021 PEN America has documented the rise of book bans in public schools nationwide, reporting more than 15,000 instances of school book bans, an increase in school book censorship not seen since the Red Scare era of the 1950s.
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Suzanne Trimel, [email protected], (201) 247-5057