19 Fulton Street, Suite 407

New York, NY 10038

(212) 807-6222
(212) 807-6245
ncac@ncac.org
www.ncac.org
tel:
fax:
email:
web:
Joan E. Bertin
Executive Director
NCAC PARTICIPATING
ORGANIZATIONS
Actors Equity Association
American Association of
School Administrators
American Association of
University Professors
American Association of
University Women
American Booksellers Foundation
for Free Expression
American Civil Liberties Union
American Ethical Union
American Federation of Teachers
American Jewish Committee
American Library Association
American Literary Translators
Association
American Orthopsychiatric Association
American Society of Journalists
& Authors
Americans United for Separation of
Church & State
Association of American Publishers
Authors Guild
Catholics for Choice
Childrens Literature Association
College Art Association
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
The Creative Coalition
Directors Guild of America
Dramatists Guild of America
Dramatists Legal Defense Fund
Educational Book & Media Association
First Amendment Lawyers Association
International Reading Association
Lambda Legal
Modern Language Association
National Center for Science Education
National Communication Association
National Council for the Social Studies
National Council of Churches
National Council of Jewish Women
National Council of Teachers of English
National Education Association
National Youth Rights Association
The Newspaper Guild/CWA
PEN American Center
People For the American Way
Planned Parenthood Federation
of America
Project Censored
SAG-AFTRA
Sexuality Information & Education
Council of the U.S.
Society of Childrens Book Writers
& Illustrators
Student Press Law Center
Union for Reform Judaism
Union of Democratic Intellectuals
Unitarian Universalist Association
United Church of Christ
Office of Communication
United Methodist Church
United Methodist Communications
Womens American ORT
Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance
Writers Guild of America, East
Writers Guild of America, West
October 22, 2014
Dear Principal Bliss,
As national organizations committed to artistic and intellectual freedom, we are
deeply troubled by Maiden High School's cancellation of the scheduled January
production of John Carianis Almost, Maine due to concerns about the plays content.
We urge the school to reverse this decision and, in the future, institute a process for
considering and responding to community complaints about dramatic productions
that would also demonstrate respect for young peoples intellectual freedom and a
commitment to an educational process inclusive of diverse ideas and viewpoints.
We understand that, after having given the Main Street Players approval to perform
the play and after parental permissions were obtained, you cancelled the production a
week into rehearsals. The last-minute cancellation was apparently a response to
complaints from parents and area churches about the plays same-sex vignette, They
Fell. This vignette features a conversation between two men who realize they are in
love with each other. In a statement quoted in the press, you claimed that the plays
sexually-explicit overtones and multiple sexual innuendos are at odds with the
schools mission and educational objectives.
There is no question about the plays educational and artistic merit. According to a
recent report released by the Educational Theatre Association, Carianis play is the
most widely-performed play in high schools across the country. The play is also due
to be performed in several North Carolina schools in the coming school year: Mount
Tabor High School in Winston Salem; Middle Creek High School in Apex; Cary High
School in Cary; and Walter Hines Page High School and Greensboro Day School in
Greensboro, to name but a few. Upon its release in 2004, the play was praised by the
American National Theatre as being one of the most outstanding regional theatre
productions, while the play was also featured in New Playwrights: Best Plays of 2006.
Anita Gales of The New York Times called Almost, Maine a beautifully structured
play, describing it as a series of nine amiably absurdist vignettes about love, with a
touch of good-natured magic realism [and a] romantic but unsentimental heart.
BY ELECTRONIC MAIL
To: Principal Robert Bliss
Maiden High School
600 West Main Street
Maiden, NC 28650
Cc: Superintendent Dan Brigman
Catawba County Schools Board of Education
P.O. Box 1010
Newton, NC 28658
School sponsorship of a celebrated theatrical production does not constitute endorsement of its content or
ideas, and no student is required to accept any ostensible message in it, any more than exposure to
paintings of Christian saints requires the viewer to believe in a particular religious doctrine. Were vaguely
defined sexually-explicit overtones a reason to ban plays from production in schools, many canonical
dramatic works would be off-limits. Would a school production of Romeo and Juliet be cancelled for its
sexual innuendos? Would Oedipus Rex be banned because it deals with the taboo sexual theme of incest?
One could, indeed, raise numerous moral, religious, or personal objections to plays that have been
performed in Maiden High School in the past, including The Addams Family, Back to the 80s: A Totally
Awesome Musical, and Little Shop of Horrors.
Whatever concerns some individuals in the community may have about the plays same-sex storyline or
sexual innuendos, these do not justify its cancellation. Indeed, our constitutional system is designed to
prevent the government from promoting or preferring any viewpoint over others. It is axiomatic that
government officials, including public school officials, may not inhibit the expression of ideas and opinions
simply because they dislike or disapprove of them. If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First
Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society
finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable. Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397, 414 (1989). [A]bove all else,
the First Amendment means that government has no power to restrict expression because of its message,
its ideas, its subject matter, or its content. Police Dept of Chicago v. Mosley, 408 U.S. 92, 95 (1972) Any
attempt to eliminate everything that is objectionable...will leave public schools in shreds. Nothing but
educational confusion and a discrediting of the public school system can result... McCollum v. Board of
Educ. 332 U.S. 203 (1948) (Jackson, J. concurring)
Not only does the decision to cancel the play raise serious constitutional concerns, but given that
complaints focused primarily on the same-sex romance scene it also sends a message of intolerance to the
entire community that could intimidate homosexual students, undermine their education, and promote a
discriminatory environment in school.
Every community is home to a diversity of opinions on moral, religious, and sexual questions. No matter
how strong the views of some members of the community may be, though, they have no right to impose
their views on others, or expect the public schools to reflect their beliefs at the expense of others. Cancelling
Almost, Maine impermissibly privileges the beliefs of some individuals over others and is likely to make the
district susceptible to many other complaints demanding the cancellation of plays and removal of books.
In our experience, controversies of this kind are best handled by enriching rather than restricting the
conversation surrounding shared community values. A similar incident around Rent in Trumbull High
School in Connecticut earlier this year cost the school much negative publicity on the national level before
the school finally decided to go ahead with the production and add post-show conversations. The March
production was very successful.
We urge you to encourage student creativity and to teach students the skills to discuss opposing views
respectfully. Please do not hesitate to contact us if we can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Svetlana Mintcheva, Director of Programs
National Coalition Against Censorship
Chris Finan, President
American Booksellers Foundation For Free Expression
Cc: Robert Bliss, Robert_Bliss@catawbaschools.net
Caine Houser, Caine_Houser@catawbaschools.net
Melissa Gemes, Melissa_Gemes@catawbaschools.net
Sherry Butler, Sherry_Butler@catawbaschools.net
Marilyn McRee, Marilyn_McRee@catawbaschools.net
Ronn Abernathy, Ronn_Abernathy@catawbaschools.net
David Brittain, David_Brittain@catawbaschools.net
Crystal Davis, Crystal_Davis@catawbaschools.net
Glenn Fulbright, Glenn_Fulbright@catawbaschools.net
Cathy Starnes, Cathy_Starnes@catawbaschools.net
Charlie Wyant, Charlie_Wyant@catawbaschools.net
Dan Brigman, Dan_Brigman@catawbaschools.net
Dan Moore, Dan_Moore@catawbaschools.net
Beth Isenhour, Beth_Isenhour@catawbaschools.net
Charles Brownstein, Executive Director
Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
Millie Davis, Senior Developer
Affiliate Groups and Public Outreach
National Council of Teachers of English
Susanna Reich, Chair
Childrens and Young Adult Book Committee
PEN American Center
Judy Platt, Director
Free Expression Advocacy
Association of American Publishers
John Weidman, President
Dramatists Legal Defense Fund (DLDF)
Barbara M. Jones, Director
American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom