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Two U.S. senators said Wednesday they were “stunned” that New College of Florida has discarded their book, Nine and Counting: The Women of the Senate, from its collection.
Washington senator Patty Murray, a Democrat, and Maine senator Susan Collins, a Republican, wrote the book along with seven other women senators in 2001, chronicling their experiences in the governing body. The book was among hundreds removed last week, The Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported, from the main library and the college’s Gender and Diversity Center, which is now closed.
“We stand against the senseless banning of books,” Murray and Collins said in a joint statement. “Such actions go against our constitutional values and the idea that our universities should be places where the freedom of speech is allowed to flourish and perspectives of all kinds are heard.”
Murray and Collins added that “throwing away books like Nine and Counting teaches our students exactly the opposite at a time when understanding and a willingness to hear each other out are needed more than ever.
“We encourage whoever facilitated the removal of Nine and Counting to take the time and read the book,” the statement continued. “Perhaps they might not be so quick to discard stories like ours next time.”
