The 'Book Banners' Speak | Opinion
newsweek.comshowed up to a school board meeting last week in Dearborn, Michigan certainly defied these stilted stereotypes. At the behest of Imam Sayyid Hassan al-Qazwini of the Islamic Institute of America, hundreds of Muslim-Americans packed the venue.
The debate that unfolded over three hours of public comment bore little resemblance to the politicized tropes commonly reported by the media.Several of the parents were not shy about describing the content that they objected to. "2022, it's been a real interesting year," began Cliff Alawy. "I really was not expecting to stand here.
I'm an avid reader. ...You'll find my family with books, curled up in any corner, always reading. I never thought I'd stand to boycott or ban books, but here I am.
I read one of the books, and I was very surprised to find a graphic novel of children gathering to masturbate—excuse my language, everybody—to masturbate into a bottle, and the person who does not participate must drink from that bottle. ...I'm a 43-year-old man and I'm embarrassed to say this stuff, and yet you say that this is okay to be in the hands of children.
