One of the glories of the U.S Constitution is found in the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law…abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press….” The First Amendment, however, does not prevent irate members of the public from urging publishing houses to shut down writers they disapprove of. At last count, 552 American authors, editors, literary agents, publishing house employees, and others in the book business have signed a letter entitled, “We Dissent,” in which they object to the Penguin Random House decision to publish a book by Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Amy Coney Barrett:
Why? Because books written by people they disagree with SHOULD NOT BE MADE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC!
The people who wrote and/or signed the letter want us to believe that they “care deeply about freedom of speech.” They care so much about freedom of speech that they urge Penguin Random House to refuse to publish a book written by a judge who didn't rule the way they liked. And that’s why I believe that they are liars and hypocrites, who champion freedom of speech and freedom of the press only for those authors with whom they agree. They make the claim – a ridiculous claim, I believe – that “this is a case where a corporation [Penguin Random House] has privately funded the destruction of human rights with obscene profits.” What is the basis for this claim? That Justice Barrett was one of five Supreme Court justices – a majority of the Court – who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Have they read Justice Barrett’s book that they wish to prevent from being published? No. Have they even seen the book? No. It hasn’t been written yet, let alone published.
Perhaps the most important books for us to read are the books we disagree with. So if you disagree with the High Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, then Justice Barrett’s book, once it is published, may be just the right book to pick up and read!