Books have power to open world, even to closed minds
Five years ago, a group of men decided to start a book club. We wanted to read different genres, expose ourselves to a variety of ideas and seek to understand what a better world would look like.
We were not interested in censoring one another’s ideas but rather encouraged book choices that challenged us intellectually. We read books that help us seek an understanding of who we are in a world that celebrates diversity, justice and the freedom to think for oneself.
Unlike groups like the Moms for Liberty, we will not ban books but celebrate any author who can give us a new understanding of the world we live in. I encourage everyone to seek opportunities to read books of their own choosing and to defy those who seek to limit our views with their own prejudices.
This is a difficult time for many in our country who seek truth, enjoy the art of free debate and see the free exchange of ideas as a fundamental cornerstone of our democracy. As an educator, I never thought I would witness the shameless censorship of books nor calls to stifle our freedom to examine our history.
Free ideas and the celebration of learned people is what forged our precious and delicate democracy. The ideas of Plato, Aristotle, the Magna Carta, Voltaire, John Locke, Thomas Hobbes and Jean-Jacques Rousseau had an enormous impact on the writings of Jefferson, Hamilton, Madison and many of our forefathers. These ideas were taken up by enlightened and well-read individuals. They were not limited by their biases, their fears, nor by a small and trivial vision of the new world they sought to create.
The ideas of the Founding Fathers were the inspiration for those who worked to build a more perfect union dedicated to the ideal of equality of all people. That vision has inspired other countries as well.
A great leader, Martin Luther King Jr., once reminded our nation that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.” Inspirational voices call us to see our destiny in the bright lights of inquiry, free ideas and open dialogue. We cannot bend the arc with prejudice, fearmongering and ideas that represent a limited and biased view of the world and our diverse nation. We must resist the bigotry of the Moms for Liberty, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and many more who would have us believe that theirs is the only lens through which to view the world.
We are thankful for other voices that give us an opportunity to examine our past, believe in our present and advance the arc of justice into the future. We are grateful to voices like James Baldwin, Fannie Lou Hamer, César Chávez, Nikole Hannah-Jones and Bell Hooks to name a few. Let all their voices be heard!
Don Duran lives in Albuquerque. He is a native of New Mexico and is a retired educator. He has been a teacher, school administrator, superintendent, assistant secretary of education in New Mexico and served as a school board member in Albuquerque.
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