Ten Little Rights, And Then There Were None

Censorship is alive and well in the environs of Cincinnati. A story that has been widely read, performed as a play and made into movies many times over has been cancelled as a high school play because of a local NAACP branch.

Gary Hines (president of the local chapter) complained that the 1939 mystery novel, Ten Little Indians, was inappropriate because the original title used the dreaded "N" word instead of Indians. The title was taken from a poem of the same name and was adjusted to Indians later, as sensitivities changed. There is nothing racial in the story itself, yet Hines went out of his way to dredge up a piece of history most people are totally unaware of for what reason? To make a show of power against high school students? What good came out of this?

Well, Joan Powell, president of the Lakota Board of Education, thinks she knows Gary's motivation. She says Hines has a history of making racial accusations against Lakota schools with his personal financial interests sometimes coming into play. You see, Hines operates GPH Consultants, a diversity training company. It seems Gary has no problem with what might be conflict of interest if playing racial cards allows him to take home the kitty.

Why isn't the ACLU taking up this violation of First Amendment rights? Oh, I forgot the ACLU no longer thinks that right applies to everyone equally.