Good morning, it’s Tuesday.
There’s a group of people across the U.S. who are bravely fighting on the front lines of the battle to preserve small-d democracy. Day in and day out, they’re putting their livelihoods on the line to defend some of the basic tenets that make this country great: Free speech, open debate, creativity, education, and inquiry.
I’m not sure what that description brought to mind for you, but in case you didn’t get it, I’m talking about librarians.
Yes, librarians. And if you’re surprised by this, you shouldn’t be. That stereotype of the bookish, quiet and retiring individual wearing glasses on a chain and a cardigan went out the window long ago, (though, if you happen to be a librarian who fits this description, that’s certainly OK, too).
Nationwide, librarians are front-and-center in the debate over what kind of books are appropriate for the public to read. And we’re not just talking about school libraries here, though those certainly are in the thick of this particular fight.
For example, last month, a former librarian sued the Llano County, Texas, and local library officials after she says she was fired for refusing to purge certain books from the library’s collection. This came after a 2023 court decision that returned books on race, sexuality, gender, and health to the library system’s shelves and the county commissioners responded by floating the idea of shuttering the entire operation.
You read that right: No more public libraries because some people couldn’t get their heads around books that talked frankly to kids about things like farts.
Certainly banning books is nothing new. The destruction of, or restriction of access to, books dates back many centuries and has long been a tool of those who seek to control a populous by preventing them from learning or observing their respective religious beliefs. But modern-day efforts – usually by conservative activists and lawmakers – to ban books is on the rise.
According to the American Library Association 1,597 books were challenged in 2021 – the highest number since the organization first started tracking bans two decades ago.
Even scarier: The number of titles targeted for censorship surged 65 percent in 2023, reaching the highest levels ever documented by the ALA. The organization’s data showed efforts to censor 4,240 unique book titles in schools and libraries – up from the previous high of 2,571 in 2022.
The two titles most frequently targeted for censorship are “All Boys Aren’t Blue” and “Gender Queer.” But at least one older classic – Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye”, which depicts sexual abuse – is No. 3 on the top 13 most challenged titles list of 2022. Other books are targeted because they depict drug use or feature profanity.
And least you are smugly thinking that this sort of thing OF COURSE is occurring in red states like Texas and couldn’t possibly be occurring in a liberal bastion like New York, well, think again. And again.
Not quite the same as banning books for content, but related, is the battle of so-called “drag” story hours that ended up shuttering the library in Lake Luzerne for months. It only just recently reopened.
Another place where book banning is de rigueur in New York? Prisons – especially books about (go figure) the criminal justice system.
There is some good news to report on the banned books front, notably that some institutions – like the New York Public Library – are going out of their way to fight against censorship and push to make available to readers of all ages materials that are off limits to readers elsewhere in the country.
It’s National Librarian Day, which comes at the tail end of National Library Week. Do yourself a favor and drop by your local library, maybe with some treats in hand – a free ice cream cone from Ben & Jerry’s, perhaps? – to thank these First Amendment warriors for standing up on behalf of all of us. They put up with a lot, and they keep on going. I, for one, am thankful for them.
Another beautiful spring day is on tap, with mostly sunny skies and temperatures expected to top out in the mid 60s.
In the headlines…
Former President Donald Trump arrived in a New York courtroom at 9:32 a.m. yesterday flanked by members of his legal team as his historic criminal trial got underway. In brief remarks to reporters, he called the trial an “assault on America.”
The initial pool of prospective jurors in Trump’s trial dwindled rapidly. More than half of the first group of 96 were dismissed after indicating that they did not believe they could be impartial. Court adjourned for the day roughly with zero jurors chosen.
As Trump’s trial began the scene outside the courthouse had elements of a feisty political skirmish and a surreal circus rolled into one. The streets below drew a mix of gawkers, activists and publicity hounds, along with a large contingent of reporters.
Judge Juan Merchan told Trump’s team he will see them next week when asked about the possibility of changing the schedule so the former president could attend next Thursday’s Supreme Court argument.
The judge said he will not yet rule on Trump’s request to skip the trial on May 17 for him to attend his son’s high school graduation. “It really depends on if we are on time and where we are in the trial,” Judge Merchan said.
Even as a judge was hearing arguments on last-minute issues in a criminal case that centers on salacious allegations and threatens to upend his presidential bid, Trump appeared to nod off a few times, his mouth going slack and his head drooping onto his chest.
Israel’s war cabinet met to weigh possible responses to Iran’s missile and drone attack over the weekend, as the United States, Britain and other allies strongly urged Israel to show restraint and sought to de-escalate tensions between the two regional powers.
Israel’s military chief said that his country will respond to Iran’s weekend attack, but he did not elaborate on when and how as world leaders urged against retaliation, trying to avoid a spiral of violence in the Middle East.
Ruth Patir, Israel’s representative at the Venice Biennale, says she won’t open her show in the national pavilion until Israel and Hamas reach “a cease-fire and hostage release agreement.”
The White House rejected a long-shot effort from House Republicans to get President Joe Biden to testify before lawmakers in the GOP’s stalled impeachment inquiry.
“Your impeachment investigation is over,” Special Counsel to the President Richard Sauber wrote to House Oversight Chair James Comer. “We decline your invitation for President Biden to testify.”
Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden earned $619,976 in 2023, according to their joint tax return released by the White House on Monday – the deadline date for Americans to file their taxes.
The first couple’s income rose 7% to $619,976 in 2023 and they paid 23.7% of that in federal taxes.
The White House also released the return for Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff, showing that pair made $450,299 last year.
Biden today is scheduled to deliver a speech in Scranton, Pennsylvania, about why the wealthy should pay more in taxes to reduce the federal deficit and help fund programs for the poor and middle class.
Trump broke with the tradition of presidents making their federal tax returns public, saying he was not able to do so while being audited by the Internal Revenue Service, even as the agency claimed he was free to release them.
Biden’s campaign spent $29.2 million in March alone, according to campaign finance records filed late last night. That’s more than four times the amount he spent in the previous month, when he dropped about $6.3 million.
Though much has been made of the president’s age, his tailoring tells another story. There are lessons to be learned here.
Speaker Mike Johnson said he planned this week to advance a long-stalled national security spending package to aid Israel, Ukraine and other US allies, along with another bill aimed at mollifying conservatives who have been vehemently opposed to backing Kyiv.
Facing an outright rebellion from conservatives who fiercely oppose aiding Ukraine, Johnson said he would push to get the package to the House floor under a single debate rule, then hold separate votes on aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.
The long-awaited decision by Johnson marks a pivotal moment for the Louisiana Republican as he has faced intense pressure from his conference over how he would handle foreign aid to the key US allies.
The Republican-led House voted in favor of a series of bills aimed at squeezing Iran financially in response to an unprecedented drone and missile attack launched by the Islamic Republic against Israel over the weekend.
The Justice Department is preparing to file a federal antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation, the parent company of Ticketmaster, according to multiple reports.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that the Justice Department will be filing an antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation in the coming weeks, citing people familiar with the matter.
The Supreme Court temporarily allowed Idaho to enforce a ban on gender-affirming treatment for minors, effectively suggesting that some justices appear comfortable with wading into another front in the culture wars.
The Supreme Court seemed ready to limit the reach of a federal statute that makes it a crime for state and local officials, along with institutions that receive federal money, to accept gifts and payments meant to influence or reward their actions.
In a lively argument studded with hypothetical questions about a wide variety of gifts – from big hospital donations to Starbuck’s gift cards – a majority of the justices seemed persuaded that the government’s interpretation of the law was too broad.
The Court declined to hear an appeal from Black Lives Matters organizer DeRay Mckesson, letting stand a lower court decision that some critics fear could limit the First Amendment rights of Americans to organize protests against the government and police.
Justice Clarence Thomas was not on the bench yesterday as the other eight justices heard arguments, with no reason given for his absence.
The 75-year-old justice was also not participating remotely in arguments, as justices sometimes do when they are ill or otherwise cannot be there in person.
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a preliminary state budget agreement with legislative leaders, though they didn’t join her for a victory lap press conference in the Capitol’s Red Room.
The roughly $237 billion spending package includes a landmark deal meant to massively ramp up housing supply in the state along with wins for Hochul in her effort to clamp down on school and Medicaid funding.
The budget represented an $8 billion increase from last year’s spending plan, with higher than expected tax revenues allaying initial fears of austerity measures.
Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins will now have to iron out final details of the spending plan in the next few days. Barring a major implosion, the budget could be voted on by the end of the week.
Hochul has launched an aggressive last-minute push to use state budget negotiations to extend Eric Adams’ mayoral control of New York City schools, state Sen. John Liu said.
Hochul have struck a compromise on housing legislation that will allow the governor and Adams to claim they have engineered a package that will jumpstart badly needed construction to solve the city’s housing crisis. But will it be enough? Details remain murky.
Some lawmakers raised concerns about some of the housing deal’s critical elements — leaving open the possibility that parts of the deal might still change or that it could conceivably fall apart.
Hochul announced record-setting tourism numbers in New York from April 6 to April 9 as visitors arrived for the total solar eclipse.
New York’s proposed Medical Aid in Dying Act got the endorsement from the Medical Society of the State of New York, state Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal, who sponsors the legislation in that chamber, announced.
Adams celebrated his 60th birthday in 2020 at the lux pad of a Chinese billionaire who recently pleaded guilty to orchestrating an illegal straw donor scheme.
A group of progressive politicians and criminal justice advocates blasted Adams and NYPD Commissioner Ed Caban over what they see as the department’s “shameful” decision to not discipline two officers involved in the fatal shooting of Kawaski Trawick.
The MTA may be violating New York City Human Rights Law for requiring people with disabilities to book Access-A-Ride trips by 5 p.m. the day before travel, a federal judge has found.
For the first time in a campaign to stamp out e-bike battery fires, the FDNY filed criminal charges against a shop owner who repeatedly faced civil summons for allegedly selling illegal uncertified batteries and unsafely charging them.
New York City officials issued a dire warning about the alarming rise of a disease spread by rat urine — after a record-high number of cases in 2023.
The Brooklyn Bridge was temporarily closed yesterday as hundreds of pro-Palestinian protestors marched across the iconic span.
The marchers — including some who burned American flags, according to social media — converged on the historic span around 3:45 p.m., immediately disrupting cars and prompting NYPD cops to swarm the area and begin cuffing at least two dozen of them.
The New York Philharmonic said two players it had tried to fire in 2018 — but was forced to rehire after the musicians’ union challenged their dismissal — would not take part in rehearsals or performances for the time being.
John Sterling, 85, has reached the end of his illustrious Yankees play-by-play career. The longtime Yankees radio voice is retiring effective immediately, the team announced, and he will be honored with a ceremony on Saturday at Yankee Stadium.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg collected a cool $850,000 in donations after indicting Trump last March — with powerful Democrats and left-leaning labor unions cheering on the prosecution with their wallets, records show.
Ex-Rep. George Santos vowed to run an all-volunteer political comeback campaign after a new campaign filing showed he didn’t raise or spend any money in the first weeks of his supposed congressional bid.
Republicans contend that Democrat Josh Riley submitted dozens of invalid signatures to qualify for the Working Families Party ballot line in the upcoming election for New York’s 19th Congressional District.
Touro University, a New York City-based school, is exploring an affiliation with The College of Saint Rose — a last-ditch effort that could potentially keep the 104-year-old college campus open in some form.
Columbia University’s president, Nemat Shafik, will testify today about antisemitism before the same House committee that grilled the presidents of the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Two upstate police officers and an armed suspect were killed in a Sunday night shootout near Syracuse. A member of the Syracuse police and a deputy in the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Office died after pursuing the suspect to a residence in Salina.
The suspect, Christopher Murphy, had no criminal history, besides an arrest 10 years ago on a drunken-driving charge. On Sunday, he was in the house with a friend, using cocaine, when the officers arrived.
State Police investigators and others compelled by a 2019 law to be the petitioners in civil proceedings used to seize firearms from someone considered dangerous, are increasingly experiencing their own consequences from being flagged as “highly litigious.”
A psychologist at Brookwood Secure Center for Youth was arrested and charged with rape and other sexual crimes involving eight victims at the state youth detention center between 2020 and 2022.
The Port of Albany was recently awarded a $9.9 million grant from the state Department of Transportation’s Passenger and Freight Rail Assistance Program to upgrade its rail and wharf system.
La Perla Restaurant & Country Inn at the Gregory House, a one-plus acre property in Averill Park that includes a three-bedroom house, 160-seat restaurant and 12-room hotel, was recently listed for sale at $999,000.
Eight days after completing one of the greatest collegiate basketball careers ever recorded, Caitlin Clark was selected with the No. 1 pick in Monday’s WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever.
Clark is poised to not only help the Fever return to the postseason for the first time since 2016, but also use her star power to jolt the WNBA at a critical juncture in its history.
The WNBA is looking to continue growing in the next few years. The league intends to reach 16 teams by 2028, commissioner Cathy Engelbert said before the draft.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
