Pink pledges to give out banned books at Florida gigs
Pink will be handing out banned book titles in Florida this week. (Getty Images)
As if she wasn’t already one of the most iconic celebrity allies, Pink has pledged to give away 2,000 copies of the most frequently banned books to fans at her upcoming Florida gigs.
In an act of protest against Florida lawmakers’ attempts to stifle free speech and LGBTQ+ stories, Pink has teamed up with non-profit organisation PEN America to give away thousands of books that have been banned by the southern state.
According to PEN America, Florida now boasts the most banned books in public school classrooms and libraries in all of the US. Overall, it accounts for over 40 per cent of all banned books nationwide.
To counter this, Pink has decided to give these banned titles out to the first 1,000 fans who show up at her Miami and Sunrise gigs this week.
The “So What” singer announced her plans in an Instagram Live discussion with PEN America CEO Suzanne Nossel and poet Amanda Gorman on Monday (13 November).
“Books have held a special joy for me from the time I was a child, and that’s why I am unwilling to stand by and watch while books are banned by schools,” she explained.
“It’s especially hateful to see authorities take aim at books about race and racism and against LGBTQ authors and those of color. We have made so many strides toward equality in this country and no one should want to see this progress reversed.
“This is why I am supporting PEN America in its work and why I agree with them: no more banned books.”
Among the books that Pink has decided to hand out are titles like The Family Book by Todd Parr, The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman, and a book from the Girls Who Code series, founded by Reshma Saujani.
Re-sharing the Instagram Live discussion to her account, Pink, who is mum to Willow, 12, and Jameson, six, added: “As a mom of two young readers, I can’t imagine letting someone else decide what MY CHILDREN can and cannot read!”
Pink did face some backlash from far-right conservatives after the collaboration was announced, but the recording artist had time to clap back.
Taking to her X (aka Twitter) account, the “Just Give Me A Reason” singer made it clear that she wasn’t going to be deterred by weak attempts at insults.
“You know you’ve hit a sore spot in a weak mind when their only argument is ‘She’s ugly!’, ‘She’s fat!’, ‘She’s irrelevant’,” she wrote.
“READ BANNED BOOKS! GO TO @PENAMERICA TO LEARN HOW YOU CAN STOP THE BANS AND THE NONSENSE”
One troll tried to challenge the songstress by writing: “If @Pink is able to give them away, then they aren’t banned. Has she read these porn books to her kids? I bet she hasn’t even read them. Dare her to read them aloud at her concerts. See what happens.”
But Pink simply replied: “Only if it’s a double dog dare!!!”
Standing firm, the “Try” singer added: “The following are some titles of books that have been banned from schools in Florida…. Lmk which book is pornography…. To Kill A Mockingbird, The Hate You Give, Forrest Gump, A Catcher In The Rye, The Hill We Climb, Girls Who Code, Atlas Shrugged, 1984, The Kite Runner, The Bluest Eye, A Wrinkle In Time, The Diary of Anne Frank, The Fault In Our Stars, etc etc.”
Pink isn’t the first celebrity to come for Florida’s book bans, either. Back in September some of the biggest stars in the business from Ariana Grande and Gabrielle Union to Mark Ruffalo and Andy Cohen signed an open letter to denounce book bans nationwide.
