Last week, we told you about a Miami-area parent whose complaints about Amanda Gorman’s poem, “The Hill We Climb,” caused its removal from a local elementary school. Now, that parent is admitting to what the rest of us already knew to be true – she didn’t read the damn thing.
According to the Miami Herald, the pissed-off parent, Daily Salinas, is the mother of two students at Bob Graham Education Center, a K - 8 school located in Miami Lakes. Salinas expressed her complaints about the poem Gorman read at President Joe Biden’s inauguration, along with other children’s titles, “The ABCs of Black History,” “Cuban Kids,” “Countries in the News: Cuba,” and “Love to Langston” for including “references of critical race theory,” “indirect hate messages” and “gender ideology and indoctrination,” according to the Florida Freedom to Read Project.
In a May 24 interview with the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Salinas was asked about her book challenges as well as antisemitic content found on her Facebook page, including a disturbing post with a list of steps for how “Jewish Zionists” would achieve world domination, including “Replace royal rule with socialist rule, then communism, then despotism,” and “Sacrifice people (including Jews sometimes) when necessary.”
In the interview, Salinas, who says she has a deep opposition to communism, due to her Cuban heritage, admitted she hadn’t read her questionable post beyond the word “communism.” She also noted that English is not her first language.
“I see the word ‘communism,’ and I think it’s something about communism,” she said. “I didn’t read the words.”
“I want to apologize to the Jewish community,” Salinas added. “I’m not what the post says. I love the Jewish community.”
When it came to Gorman’s poem, however, Salinas was far less apologetic but she did use the same “I didn’t read it” excuse.
“I’m not an expert,” she admitted in the interview. “I’m not a reader. I’m not a book person. I’m a mom involved in my children’s education.”
But despite all of the challenges, Gorman’s poem has plenty of supporters. Students at Gorman’s alma mater, Santa Monica, California’s New Roads School, read the poem at a school-wide rally.
“When our students see this book, they are reminded that they too are authors, thinkers, speakers, social justice advocates, champions for those who have been marginalized, and compassionate young people who want to listen and to be heard,” the school posted on Instagram.