When people think of romance novels, the first thing that comes to mind is shirtless men with windswept hair on the covers of mass-market paperbacks, or maybe the “damsel in distress” main character who is waiting for a love interest to come and save her from the clutches of evil. They’re often not thought of as ‘real’ reading, because they are stories typically written by women, for women, and starring women. But what if the truth is that even the most “raunchy” novels of the genre are deeply political?
freedom to read
Do This: Unite Against Soft Censorship
The only way to end censorship, whether it’s the quiet removal of books from library collections or in-your-face book bans, is to fight it head on. We saw a huge example of this – and a big win for free speech – this week when ABC and Disney returned Jimmy Kimmel and...
Watch This: Learn How to Spot Soft Censorship
A lot of people are talking about freedom of speech right now. As Americans, it's a right that has always defined us and that we all hold dear. That’s why the majority of us oppose book bans and censorship. The rise in book bans over the past few years has been well...
Read This: The Quiet Danger of Soft Censorship
We’ve been fighting the explosion of book bans since Red Wine & Blue started. PEN America reports 16,000 book bans in public schools since 2021 — a level not seen since the 1950s during McCarthyism. This increase has been driven by organized groups with a...
Recent Posts
Read This: How Conversion Therapy Hurts LGBTQ+ Kids and Teens
As we enter Pride month, we’re turning our attention to LGBTQ+ kids and teens. Their rights have been increasingly attacked lately, especially when it comes to being protected from dangerous threats including “conversion therapy.” What is conversion therapy? So-called...
Do This: Share What You’ve Learned About Local Government
Now that we’ve spent a few weeks learning about how local government works, let’s not keep this information to ourselves! We’ve created a shareable pdf that explains how local government shapes our daily lives, and even better – how we can get involved to make our...
Watch This: 9 Ways Local Government Impacts Us Every Day
You wake up every morning and immediately wash your face and brush your teeth with clean water running from the bathroom tap. Then you head out, driving your car or riding the city bus, on (hopefully) well-maintained roads, to get to work or drop the kids off at your...
Do This: Tell Congress to pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act
Last month, we completed our Easy A series on gerrymandering, but we’re returning to the topic one more time with breaking news! On April 29, the U.S. Supreme Court issued their decision in Louisiana v. Callais, a racial gerrymandering case we previously told you...
Read This: How Local Government Shapes our Daily Lives
When we talk about politics, we might immediately think about the President or Congress. They certainly give us a lot to talk about! But many of the decisions that impact our daily lives, like roads, schools, and public safety, are actually made at the local level. So...