Florida school bans poem read at Biden’s inauguration as concerns increase about state’s growing restrictions

Published

1 year ago

May 24, 2023

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A school in Florida has banned the poem read at Joe Biden’s inauguration after a single complaint.

The unnamed parent said Amanda Gorman’s poem The Hill We Climb was “not educational” and contained “indirectly (sic) hate messages”, adding that it could “cause confusion and indoctrinate students”.

Gorman, 25, said on Instagram that she was “gutted” the poem had been banned from the elementary school in Miami-Dade County.

She said: “Let’s be clear, most of the forbidden works are by authors who have struggled for generations to get on bookshelves. The majority of these censored works are by queer and non-white voices.”

Gorman said she had written the poem “so that all young people could see themselves in a historical moment” and that she had received “countless letters and videos” from children inspired to write their own poetry.

“Robbing children of the chance to find their voices in literature is a violation of their right to free thought and free speech,” she added.

The banning of the poem comes at a time when Governor Ron DeSantis and a number of other politicians are moving to make Florida a more restrictive and less tolerant state.

On Tuesday, The Human Rights Campaign joined the NAACP, the League of United Latin American Citizens, the Florida Immigrant Coalition and Equality Florida in issuing travel or relocation warnings for the Sunshine State.

The Hill We Climb – Amanda Gorman

When day comes, we ask ourselves where can we find light in this never-ending shade?

The loss we carry, a sea we must wade.

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.

We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting for one.

Read the full poem here

‘Openly hostile’ laws and policies

The LGBT+ advocacy group said it was not calling for a boycott of travel to Florida but that it wanted to highlight new laws passed by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature that are hostile to its community, restrict abortion access and allow Floridians to carry concealed weapons without a permit.

Last weekend the NAACP, the oldest civil rights organisation in the US, said tourists should understand that the state “devalues and marginalises the contributions of, and the challenges faced by African Americans and other communities of colour”.

It also said that recent laws and policies championed by Mr DeSantis and others are “openly hostile” towards these groups and towards LGBTQ+ people.

In recent months Florida’s leaders have:

• Backed measures that ban state colleges from having programmes on diversity, equality and inclusion, as well as critical race theory
• Passed the Stop WOKE Act, restricting race-based discussion in schools and businesses
• Prohibited local governments from giving money to organisations that issue ID cards to people illegally in the US
• Invalidated driver’s licences held by undocumented migrants
• Required hospitals accepting Medicaid to include a citizenship question on forms, something critics say is intended to prevent illegal migrants from seeking medical help
• Tried to limit discussion on LGBTQ topics in schools and remove books with gay characters from libraries

Equality Florida said: “Taken in their totality, Florida’s slate of laws and policies targeting basic freedoms and rights pose a serious risk to the health and safety of those travelling to the state.”

‘A shadow of fear’

The League of United Latin American Citizens southeast vice president Lydia Medrano said that Governor DeSantis’s actions have “created a shadow of fear within communities across the state”.

Florida is one of the most popular states in the US for tourism – more than 137.5 million visited the state last year and the industry supports 1.6 million jobs.

Democratic mayors distance themselves from state’s governor

Perhaps with that in mind, some the state’s Democratic mayors were quick to distance themselves from the state’s intolerant image.

St Petersburg mayor Ken Welch tweeted: “Everyone is always welcome and will be treated with dignity and respect.”

Tampa mayor Jane Castor tweeted: “Diversity and inclusion are central to what makes Tampa one of America’s greatest and friendliest cities. That will never change, regardless of what happens in Tallahassee.”

Mr DeSantis is expected to announce on Wednesday that he will run for the Republican presidential nomination.

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PGA Tour golfer Grayson Murray dies aged 30

Published

5 hours ago

May 25, 2024

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PGA Tour golfer Grayson Murray dies aged 30

Professional golfer Grayson Murray has died aged 30, the PGA Tour has said.

The American, a two-time tour winner who was number 58 in the world ranking, withdrew late in his second round at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, on Friday, citing an illness.

“We were devastated to learn – and are heartbroken to share – that PGA Tour player Grayson Murray passed away this morning. I am at a loss for words,” said PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan.

“The PGA Tour is a family, and when you lose a member of your family, you are never the same. We mourn Grayson and pray for comfort for his loved ones.”

Mr Monahan said he had spoken to Murray’s parents to offer his condolences and they asked that the tournament continue.

“They were adamant that Grayson would want us to do so,” he said. “As difficult as it will be, we want to respect their wishes.”

Murray, who had dealt with alcohol and mental issues in the past, made a massive turnaround this year and to win the Sony Open at Honolulu in January, ending a six-year winless drought.

“Yeah, my parents have been through, you know, hell and back basically for the last six years with me fighting some mental stuff,” Murray said at the time.

“It’s not easy on me, and the people around me that love me, they don’t like to see me down. They’ve been my number one supporters.

“There’s a few friends as well that have been there and it makes these moments a lot more special.”

Murray won his first PGA Tour title, the Barbasol Championship, in 2017.

His management company, GSE Worldwide, said in a statement: “We will hold off on commenting until we learn further details, but our heart aches for his family, his friends and all who loved him during this very difficult time.”

Murray, from Raleigh, in North Carolina, was a three-time winner of the Callaway Junior Championships and played in the US Open for the first time in 2013 as an amateur.

His best result in a major was a tie for 22nd at the 2017 PGA Championship.

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Uvalde school shooting: Families of victims sue Meta, Call Of Duty makers and gun company

Published

17 hours ago

May 25, 2024

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Uvalde school shooting: Families of victims sue Meta, Call Of Duty makers and gun company

The families of some of the victims of the Uvalde school shooting have announced new legal action against three companies they say effectively helped to “train” the gunman to carry out the attack.

Legal action against Instagram parent company Meta Platforms, the maker of the video game series Call Of Duty and the company that made the gun used in the May 2022 shooting was announced on the two-year anniversary of the attack in Texas in the US.

Salvador Ramos, 18, killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School on 24 May 2022.

The new legal cases accuse the companies of partnering to promote and create content designed to glorify combat, gun violence and killing.

Josh Koskoff, a lawyer for the families, called the companies a “three-headed monster” that “knowingly exposed [the gunman] to the weapon, conditioned him to see it as a tool to solve his problems and trained him to use it”.

“There is a direct line between the conduct of these companies and the Uvalde shooting,” Mr Koskoff said.

According to the lawsuits, Ramos had played versions of Call Of Duty since he was 15, including one that allowed him to effectively practise with the version of the rifle he used at the school.

It claimed the company created a “hyperrealistic” game where “although the killing is virtual, the weapons are authentic – they are designed to perfectly imitate their real-life counterparts in look, feel, recoil and accuracy”.

The legal action claims Instagram does little to enforce rules that ban marketing firearms and harmful content to children.

It also accuses gunmakers Daniel Defense of using the social media platform to help “extol the illegal, murderous use of its weapons”.

Some of the same families also filed a $500m (£392m) lawsuit against Texas state police officials and officers who responded to the shooting but waited more than an hour to confront Ramos inside the classroom as students and teachers lay dead, dying or wounded.

‘Baseless accusations’

Call Of Duty makers, Activision, called the shooting “horrendous and heartbreaking in every way”.

The company added its “deepest sympathies” for the “families and communities who remain impacted by this senseless act of violence”.

But it added: “Millions of people around the world enjoy video games without turning to horrific acts.”

The Entertainment Software Association – a video game industry trade group – also said it was “outraged by senseless acts of violence” but pushed back on blaming games for violence, arguing research has found no link.

“We discourage baseless accusations linking these tragedies to video gameplay, which detract from efforts to focus on the root issues in question and safeguard against future tragedies,” the group said.

Daniel Defense and Meta did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press.

This is not the first legal action to be brought over the shooting.

In December 2022, a group of different plaintiffs filed a separate lawsuit against local and state police, the city, and other school and law enforcement, which seeks at least $27bn (£21bn) and class-action status for survivors.

At least two other lawsuits have also been filed against Daniel Defense.

To mark the two-year anniversary of the shooting, community members in Uvalde planned a vigil for those killed.

In a letter, President Joe Biden said: “As we mark this solemn day, may we pray for those we lost, their loved ones, and all those who were wounded.”

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Judge rejects Alec Baldwin’s request to dismiss charge over Rust shooting

Published

1 day ago

May 24, 2024

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Judge rejects Alec Baldwin's request to dismiss charge over Rust shooting

A judge has rejected a request by Alec Baldwin to dismiss his criminal charge relating to the fatal shooting on the set of Rust.

Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer upheld an indictment charging Baldwin with one count of involuntary manslaughter in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, 42, in 2021.

The New Mexico judge rejected defence arguments that prosecutors flouted the rules of grand jury proceedings to divert attention away from exculpatory evidence and witnesses.

Prosecutors denied the accusations and said Baldwin made “shameless” attempts to escape culpability, highlighting contradictions in his statements to law enforcement, to workplace safety regulators, and in a television interview.

Baldwin has pleaded not guilty to the charge, which carries a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison.

His lawyers said after Friday’s judgement: “We look forward to our day in court.”

The 66-year-old’s trial has been scheduled to start in July.

During a rehearsal on the set of the Western film, Baldwin pointed a gun at Hutchins when the revolver went off, killing her and injuring director Joel Souza.

The actor has maintained that he pulled back the gun’s hammer but not the trigger.