New Jersey
Why the book ban promotes censorship in New Jersey – The Rider News
By Grace Bertrand
Censorship has crept into spaces from classrooms to libraries, belittling marginalized voices and under-represented identities. The privilege to pick up a book on any topic is a liberty that has been stripped from students all over the United States. Banning books in the U.S. can be traced back as early as 1637, but in just this past year, New Jersey specifically has seen 13 attempts at restricting access to 28 books ranging from topics on race, gender, sexuality and religion from school curricula and public libraries.
PEN America, a nonprofit organization committed to raising awareness for the protection of free expression in the U.S., released an “Index of School Book Bans” for just the first half of the 2022-2023 school year, where they found that 30% of the unique titles banned are books about race or racism, or “feature characters of color,” while 26% of the 1,500 unique titles banned cover LGBTQIA+ characters or themes.
The undermining of the stories waiting to be told by disempowered parties has not only been an issue in classrooms, but in libraries as well. As promoters of knowledge, librarians have a duty to protect the freedom to read for all. The American Library Association released a “Freedom to Read Statement” that affirms “libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.”
What can we do in this clash of censorship? While Rider itself has no issues, our librarians are involved in several state organizations that combat book banning in New Jersey public and school libraries, including the New Jersey Chapter of the Association of College and Research Libraries.
On the legislative side, a bill was introduced last month to create a law against book banning in New Jersey called The Freedom to Read, sponsored by Senator Andrew Zwicker, Senator Teresa Ruiz and Assemblywoman Mitchelle Drulis. Librarians across the state are calling for valuable voices from New Jersey students to submit written testimonies on the matter, simply by emailing pastpresident@njasl.org. A state hearing in front of members of the Education Committee will be held on Feb. 15.
Rider education professor Heather Casey said, “Universities are places where free and open access to information and ideas is key to learning. When access is removed to different perspectives and points of view, it limits learning.”
The banning of books is an issue unfolding in real time that not only has immediate impact, but also future consequences on how children are taught and what information is disclosed to them in their most impressionable years.
In attempts to shelter the younger generations from being easily shaped by the information out in the world, state-level policies end up denying them the ability to think for themselves and draw conclusions based on the whole truth.
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A severe thunderstorm watch looms over North Jersey on the evening of June 12 after days of extreme heat.
Nation Weather Service New York declared a severe thunderstorm watch for numerous North Jersey counties including Bergen, Passaic, Hudson, Essex, Morris and Sussex among other Central Jersey and New York counties. The watch is in effect until 9 p.m., according to the NWS statement.
In an hourly forecast from The Weather Channel for Paramus, there is a 74% chance of thunderstorms at 7 p.m.
High temperatures reached past 90 degrees in many parts of North Jersey on June 11 and June 12 as a heat advisory also remains in effect until 8 p.m., said NWS New York.
“Dangerous heat is expected to continue across much of our region through today, with several record highs likely to be challenged again. High temperatures are forecast to peak into the low to mid 90s across most of the area,” the National Weather Service said Friday.
A Heat Advisory is in effect until 8 p.m. across the state except for Atlantic, Cape May, Cumberland and Salem counties.
PHILADELPHIA – Philip McPherson II, a 37-year-old from Riverside, New Jersey, was sentenced Thursday, June 11, to 78 months in prison for his role in a 2022 plane crash in Lehigh County that killed a student pilot, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Sentencing and charges for fatal Lehigh Valley crash
What we know:
United States District Judge John M. Gallagher sentenced McPherson to 78 months in prison, three years of supervised release, a $5,000 fine, a $4,300 special assessment, and $19,530 in restitution. Judge Gallagher also barred McPherson from working in the aviation industry.
McPherson pleaded guilty in October to involuntary manslaughter, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, obstruction of an administrative proceeding, and 40 counts of serving as an airman without a certificate.
The backstory:
Court filings show that on September 28, 2022, McPherson took off from Queen City Airport in Allentown as the pilot-in-command with student pilot K.K. and crashed shortly after, resulting in K.K.’s death.
Prosecutors said McPherson acted with gross negligence, knowing he was not competent to fly as pilot-in-command. He had two prior crashes, nearly a third, and failed a reexamination for his pilot’s certificate in September 2021.
McPherson voluntarily surrendered his pilot’s certificate in October 2021 and let his Temporary Airman Certificate expire in November 2021, acknowledging his inability to meet FAA standards.
He admitted to flying with passengers without a valid FAA pilot’s certificate between October 12, 2021, and September 20, 2022.
Investigators from the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, FAA, and Salisbury Township Police Department worked on the case, which was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert Schopf and Special Assistant United States Attorney Marie Miller.
What we don’t know:
Authorities have not released further details about the circumstances leading up to the crash.
The Source: Information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
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