The Reform party is very new, west-based, anti-federalist (which is
an ok and legitimate attempt to balance east and west in Canada) but
attracts and includes members and candidates who are anti-gay
anti-French anti-Indian and anti- almost anything else to do with
equity.
Given the close historic and present associations of
bible-belt self-help with similar U.S. movements, I am concerned and
worried.
U.S. self-help politics (Waco, Oklahoma, militant freedom groups in
the hills etc.) scare me. These discourses, once extremely 'fringe'
in Canada, now may have an entry in the federal sphere of government.
Mr. Manning, Reform leader, has not been able to control his
party members, nor is it clear that he in fact opposes what they say.
The tack taken in the Reform campaign has been 'too much Quebec'
and a focus of interim work is federal 'Indian policy', leading
always to a conclusion that we should dump that discourse and ignore
constitutional responsibilities. In Canada, this is always a sign
of deep intolerance.
As a lurker on this board (I am primarily interested in university
and law school access issues, in a comfortably but now challenged
multi-cultural society), I write this overlong note in hopes that
somebody with academic and popular connections in the U.S. can help
me predict or give me insight into what might happen here next - not
so I can feel better, but so I can get some information.
Anne McGillivray
Associate Professor of Law
University of Manitoba
Winnipeg, MB, CA R3T 2N2
From: Melissa Ponder <mponder@edcc.ctc.edu>
Subject: "Attacks on the Freedom to Learn -- Online"
Date: Tue, 3 Jun 1997 12:32:56 -0700
Reply-to: edequity@tristram.edc.org
>Welcome to "Attacks on the Freedom to Learn -- Online," the newest
>>online publication of People For the American Way. This is
>>our premiere issue, and you're receiving it because we think you, as
>>a Right Wing Watch Online subscriber, might be interested in
>>information about the censorship of materials and programs in public
>>school classrooms and libraries. **This will be the only issue you
>>will receive unsolicited.** If you like the newsletter and would
>>like to subscribe, you can do so easily and at no cost. Instructions
>>for subscribing are at the end of the newsletter.
>>
>>As you may know, People For the American Way has monitored school
>>censorship for 15 years, and reported our findings in an annual report
>>titled "Attacks on the Freedom to Learn." That report has grown over
>>the years in two ways. First, the overall number of incidents has
>>increased and, secondly, the incidents have become more complex. After
>>releasing the 1996 edition of the report, which at 300 pages
>>contained a wide variety of stories of ideological attacks on public
>>education, we began to explore better ways of disseminating this
>>information. We had received complaints about how large and unwieldy
>>the report had become, and we felt that the message of the report was
>>getting lost. So we decided to release the results of our research in
>>some new ways.
>>
>>This online newsletter will be published bimonthly. It will report on
>>attempts to remove or restrict educational materials or programs in
>>classrooms and libraries. We will also be publishing a report on the
>>Religious Right's assault on public education. As regular readers of
>>"Attacks on the Freedom to Learn" know, roughly 30 to 35 percent of
>>the incidents we reported on were initiated, directly or indirectly,
>>by Religious Right political groups. Their agenda includes not only
>>censorship, but the return of prayer to public school classrooms and
>>events, Creationism in the science curriculum, the passage of broad
>>"parental rights" legislation that would allow parents to cleanse the
>>curriculum of anything they find offensive, and, the Right's ultimate
>>goal, enactment of private school vouchers, so that public education
>>funds can be used to fund private and parochial schools. In order to
>>tell the story of the Right's sophisticated and well-funded attack on
>>public education, we will be devoting a report to that story, in all
>>its complexity.
>>
>>This newsletter does not include every censorship incident reported to
>>us. Rather it provides a sampling of the kinds of challenges that
>>have taken place during the 1996-1997 school year. Censorship in the
>>schools continues to be a serious problem. In this newsletter, we
>>have reports from Alaska to Maryland; from elementary schools to high
>>schools. Our premiere issue includes reports of attempted censorship
>>of articles in student newspapers, a science fair project, library
>>books and books in Literature classes. Again we see the names of some
>>of the most frequently challenged books, such as "Catcher in the Rye"
>>but we also see new books and new issues. What follows are some of
>>the highlights that have been reported to us. We hope you find this
>>information useful and informative.
>>
>>To receive "Attacks on the Freedom to Learn -- Online" on a regular
>>basis, please subscribe by filling out the form at
>>http://pfaw.org/aflo or sending e-mail to "maiser@pfaw.org" with the
>>message "sub aflo". A subject heading is not necessary.
>>
>>We would also like to hear from you if you are aware of censorship
>>incidents in your community. If you have an incident to report,
>>please e-mail us at attacks@pfaw.org or report your incident using the
>>form which is accessible from http://pfaw.org/aflo.
>>
>>
>>ATTACKS ON THE FREEDOM TO LEARN -- ONLINE 1.1
>>
>>AK, Anchorage: "Earthshine"
>>CA, Coachella Valley: Condom science fair project
>>CO, Colorado Springs: Student newspaper story on homosexuality
>>GA, Gwynn County: "Catcher in the Rye"
>>KY, Marshall County: Gluing pages of science textbook
>>MD, Frederick: Teen Yellow Pages
>>MA, Northboro: Heterosexuality questionnaire
>>MN, Anoka: "Goosebumps "
>>PA, New Wilmington: "Life and Works of Renoir"
>>TX, Pecos: "Beloved"
>>VA, Albemarle: "It's Perfectly Normal"
>>
>>
>>======
>>To receive "Attacks on the Freedom to Learn -- Online" on a regular
>>basis, please subscribe by filling out the form at
>>http://pfaw.org/aflo or sending e-mail to "maiser@pfaw.org" with the
>>message "sub aflo". A subject heading is not necessary.
>>
>>We would also like to hear from you if you are aware of censorship
>>incidents in your community. If you have an incident to report,
>>please e-mail us at attacks@pfaw.org or report your incident using the
>>form which is accessible from http://pfaw.org/aflo.
>>
>>People For the American Way | 2000 M Street NW | Washington, DC 20009
>>(202) 467-4999 | pfaw@pfaw.org | http://pfaw.org
>>
>>***MLS Online-An Internet BBS. (www.mlsonline.com) Focus: Family, Business &
>>Education. Voice Support: 716-454-5577
>