Leftist Media Doubles Down On False Poetry Book Ban

It has been said that a lie repeated often enough becomes the truth. That certainly appears to be the strategy employed by leftist news organizations and Democratic politicians after a rumor spread that a famous poetry book was banned by a Florida school.

The false assertion laid the blame squarely at the feet of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a newly announced presidential candidate.

According to the tale, poet Amanda Gorman’s book was banned. The writing contains the poem, “The Hill We Climb,” which Gorman read for President Joe Biden’s nomination.

This prompted the obligatory White House proclamation of solidarity with the beleaguered writer who fell victim to Florida’s fascism.

Only, that’s not what happened at all.

As reported by TheBlaze, not one individual has produced a hint of evidence that any student has been denied access to the book.

To the contrary, the school declared that the book is valuable and historically significant and remains accessible for all students from all grade levels. It was simply relocated from one shelf to another.

The entire incident is thoroughly debunked by Snopes, though a quick Twitter search will find accusations that DeSantis and Florida are fascist to the core over the non-incident.

According to the New York Times, one parent objected to two pages of Gorman’s book as well as a few other works by different authors. She claimed in a letter that the work was “not educational” and could “indoctrinate” students.

A school committee met for over two hours to discuss the parent’s concerns over five total books.

It determined and wrote that Gorman’s writing “has educational value because of its historical significance. The vocabulary used in the poem was determined to be of value for middle school students. Therefore, the decision…is that the book be shelved in the Middle School Section.”

That’s it. No banning and no blocking of any students from reading the book. The school’s website listed the work: “Interest grade level: 7-Adult.”

As for Gov. DeSantis, Snopes acknowledged that the Republican had nothing at all to do with the book’s relocation, the complaint, or the panel’s findings.

Even the Bob Graham Education Center in Miami Lakes and officials with Miami-Dade County Public Schools declared in recent days that the allegations were patently false. As for retractions and apologies, don’t hold your breath.