The NCAC Free Speech Matters Benefit was a great success. Over 200 people came to the City Winery in downtown Manhattan to celebrate free speech and honor YA writer Lauren Myracle, school librarian Dee Ann Venuto, and YFEP 2009 Film Contest Winner Jordan Allen.
All three work hard to promote free expression. Lauren Myracle is a NYTimes bestselling author of the Internet Girls trilogy—ttyl, ttfn, and l8r, g8r. She was the most censored author in 2009.
Dee Ann Venuto countered Glenn Beck’s 9/12 group challenge of LGBTQ books in her library in Rancocoas Valley High School, Mt. Holly, NJ.
Jordan Allen’s film Freedom Thieves won First Prize in NCAC’s Youth Free Expression Project Film Contest in 2009.
NCAC honorees Dee Ann Venuto, YA writer Lauren Myracle, and YFEN film contest winner Jordan Allen
School librarians like Dee Ann Venuto understand the importance of fighting censorship, “Censorship has implications, especially when a country-wide challenge to LGBTQ books is organized by Glenn Beck’s local 9/12 group and motivated by political, homophobic reaction to public education and Obama’s administration… People recognize removing books meant to guide adolescents undermines their intelligence and society’s diverse values.”
The evening started with actor David Staller, director and founder of the Gingold Theatrical Group as master of ceremonies.
Master of Ceremonies David Staller
Executive Director Joan Bertin introduced Lauren Myracle saying, “…Lauren is in very good company with the likes of Toni Morrison, Sherman Alexie, Pat Conroy, plus a raft of wonderful and much censored authors… We need you Lauren – and Judy [Blume] and Robie [Harris]… and all the other brave souls who will stand up to the sanctimonious people who think they know what’s best for everybody’s else’s kids.”
Joan Bertin honoring Lauren Myracle at the NCAC benefit
For more photos of the benefit, see our gallery on Flickr:
Dee Venuto admits she will not do what she is paid $85K to do. See “School Media Specialist Passes Sexual Content Review to Students; Dee Venuto Says It Is Discrimination to Keep Children From Material Including Lengthy, Vivid Descriptions of a Ménage a Trois.”
NCAC is an organization that pushes pornography. See “NCAC Promotes Porn; Says Keeping Inappropriate Material From Children is Censorship; It Has Lost All Credibility.”
NCAC also supports censorship that it supports. See “NCAC Supports Censorship with Double Standards and Made Up Facts.”
Given the above, it is easy to understand why the NCAC would award Dee Venuto such an award.
I would have the utmost concern to have a person like Dee Venuto teaching in the district in which I live. This is certainly a twisted idealogly and to think she discussed menage a troi w/ a student is beyond the pale. I tend to think she has been indoctroninated by attending school where we have professors and teachers from the far left teaching and twisting the beliefs of our children–When are the rest of the parents like me going to wake up?
Morality is gone– our children have no idea what society and the fringe are doing to them—Dee Venuto, I ask you–do you go to church?
To Concerned Parent,
If you are so concerned, why don’t you involve yourself in your childs life to guide them in what you think is right and don’t just tell them that this or that is wrong or right, explain your reasoning for it so that instead of the kids thinking ok my mom says this is wrong, they have a reason to believe that you are right. I personally believe you are wrong but because I live in reality and am a reasonable person I believe in two sides to everything to keep balance and also that this country was founded on religious freedom and expanded with freedom in many other ways. Being too conservative will stifle broad thinking and creativity that will allow this country and its people to climb out of our current economic and violent times.
Please, with your high moral ground, guide your children into having their own personality while instructing them in your right and wrong beliefs and love them for who they are in their own right, not yours.