Category: News

Novelist Michael Holgate, from Jamaica, recently received a Moonbeam Award for his children’s fantasy novel Night of the Indigo. More from Krista Henry, Staff Reporter at the Jamaica Gleaner:

The Moonbeam Awards are some of the fastest growing United States-based awards focused on children’s books.

Presented by the Jenkins Group and Independent Publisher Online, the Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards are designed “to bring increased recognition to exemplary children’s books and their creators, and to support childhood literacy and life-long reading”. Awards are given in 36 categories covering the full range of subjects, styles and age groups that children’s books are written and published in today.

The Moonbeam Awards are intended for authors, illustrators, publishers and self-publishers of children’s books, written in English and intended for the North American market.

Heeeyyyy! The huge debate and protests had an impact! Bloomsbury has changed the cover for Justine Larbalestier’s forthcoming YA novel, LIAR!

The previous cover was controversial because it showed a white teenaged girl, whereas the book’s protagonist is biracial (black/white.) Larbalestier, who is a white Australian author, tried to change the cover behind the scenes, but when she was unsuccessful, she wrote about it on her blog. The book’s editor threw fuel on the fire of the ensuing controversy by claiming that the cover was intended to deepen the mindf*ck; because the book’s protag, who is a pathological liar, is the one who tells us that she is biracial. Nobody bought that, though.

So now that they’ve caved to pressure, it’s up to us to show them that audiences really DO read books with POC on the cover. Go buy it!

To the Speculative Fiction Community:

We at the Carl Brandon Society are writing this open letter to our community regarding the recent incident involving Harlan Ellison and K. Tempest Bradford. Mr. Ellison, mistakenly believing that Ms. Bradford had criticized him on her blog, wrote a post on his discussion board that included the following passage:

She is apparently a Woman of Color (which REALLY makes me want to bee-atch-slap her, being the guy who discovered and encouraged one of the finest writers and Women of Color who ever lived, my friend, the recently-deceased Octavia Estelle Butler). And she plays that card endlessly, which is supposed to exorcise anyone suggesting she is a badmouth ignoramus, or even a NWA. Ooooh, did I say that?

Mr. Ellison has subsequently apologized to Ms. Bradford and she has accepted his apology. We do not wish to address what has now become a private matter between the two. However, since the problematic post was made in public and thus was published in full view of the SF community, the Carl Brandon Society wishes to define some basic principles of discourse which were put into question as a result of this exchange. We hope community members will consider and respect these principles in future debates and disagreements.

These principles are as follows:

1) The use of racial slurs in public discourse is utterly unacceptable, whether as an insult, a provocation, or an attempt at humor. This includes both explicit use of slurs and referencing them via acronyms.

2) Any declaration of a marginalized identity in public is not a fit subject for mockery, contempt, or attack. Stating what, and who, you are is not “card playing.” It is a statement of pride. It is also a statement of fact that often must be made because it has bearing on discussions of race, gender, and social justice.

3) Expressing contempt for ongoing racial and gender discourse is unacceptable. Although particular discussions may become heated or unpleasant, discourse on racism and sexism is an essential part of antiracism and feminist activism and must be respected as such. There is no hard line between discourse and action in activism; contempt of the one too often leads to contempt of the whole.

The Carl Brandon Society assumes in this letter that everyone reading it shares the common goal of racial and gender equity, and general social justice, in all our communities. We hope for a quick end to arguments over whether or not unacceptable forms of debate should be allowable. These arguments obstruct the process of seeking justice for all.

Sincerely,

The Carl Brandon Society

STEERING COMMITTEE
Candra K. Gill
Claire Light
Victor Raymond
Nisi Shawl
Diantha Sprouse

Please feel free to add your signature to this letter in the comments.