January 30, 2012
Alexie on Tucson book ban
Sherman AlexieLet's get one thing out of the way: Mexican immigration is an oxymoron. Mexicans are indigenous. So, in a strange way, I'm pleased that the racist folks of Arizona have officially declared, in banning me alongside Urrea, Baca, and Castillo, that their anti-immigration laws are also anti-Indian. I'm also strangely pleased that the folks of Arizona have officially announced their fear of an educated underclass. You give those brown kids some books about brown folks and what happens? Those brown kids change the world. In the effort to vanish our books, Arizona has actually given them enormous power. Arizona has made our books sacred documents now. Comment: For more on Tucson's book ban, see Tucson's Books Censored, Not Banned? and Tucson Bans Native Books, Shakespeare Play. For more on Alexie, see Alexie and Erdrich Deserve Nobel Prizes and School Reverses True Diary Ban.
Az is now talking about allowing the teaching of the bible as an elective in state high schools. I just saw this on the news the other day. First they ban ethnic studies and now they are trying to replace it with the bible?
ReplyDeleteI love AZ but hate the people that run it.
Shonie
He said: Let's get one thing out of the way: Mexican immigration is an oxymoron. Mexicans are indigenous."
ReplyDeleteThat's really kind of silly. In actual fact, any person moving from one nation to another is immigration.
Also, only some Mexicans meet the definition of indigenous.