The Sentinel-Record

Address ‘real’ issues

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Dear editor:

It’s good to see the governor is finally dealing with important issues, like foster care of Arkansas children. Unfortunat­ely, Sanders spent her first weeks expanding the “culture wars” in Arkansas, dealing with problems that did not exist and in doing so creating real problems.

Her great concern over the teaching of Black history called the “critical race theory” dealt with something not being taught by any known school system. Research shows that as a subject of some law schools. Banning it simply creates the possibilit­y of a teacher getting reprimande­d or even fired for teaching accurate history of segregatio­n that existed fully for so many years, just as teachers in the ’50s were often fired for teaching about the failures of communism — teachers not advocating but implying denunciati­on of that system. Many still remember those Mccarthy years.

Likewise, Sanders attempting to purify our libraries brings to mind the “Bowdlerizi­ng” of Shakespear­e in the late 1880s. The 1973 Act that handled questionab­le material in libraries has worked well. By following Desantis’ lead in Florida, we now run the risk of having our libraries closed by librarians in fear of a large fine for someone’s objection of one book. I’m certain our gentle readers are aware of how many classics are presently banned by hundreds of libraries nationwide already. In some cases, even the Bible is on the list of banned books. Full censorship is the work of dictators. History is full of book burnings by “purist” leaders.

I do hope that the governor will continue to address real issues rather than creating more unnecessar­y law cases through unthinking actions. She was an honor student in college. What has happened to her mentality in recent years?

John W. “Doc” Crawford Hot Springs

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