Latest news with #TheDiaryofaYoungGirl
Asahi Shimbun
3 days ago
- General
- Asahi Shimbun
‘Anne Frank' roses at Tokyo girls' school sow desire for peace
Anne's roses executive committee members Rino Nakamura, left, and Haruka Minami pose with roses of the 'Souvenir d'Anne Frank' variety in glorious full bloom on a flower bed at Tokyo Jogakkan Middle School & High School, in the capital's Shibuya Ward, on April 26. (Eriko Noda) Roses named in honor of a young holocaust victim continue to be raised with great care at a girls' school in Tokyo a quarter-century after the bush first arrived as a gift. Officials of Tokyo Jogakkan Middle School & High School, in the capital's Shibuya Ward, began growing 'Souvenir d'Anne Frank' roses 25 years ago, hoping that tending the flowers would help students connect with history and grow a desire for peace in their hearts. The flowers, more commonly referred to as 'Anne's roses,' bloomed in full glory once again this spring. The Belgian horticulturist who developed this rose variety named it in memory of Anne Frank (1929-1945), the famed author of 'The Diary of a Young Girl,' who perished in a concentration camp during World War II. Roses of the Souvenir d'Anne Frank variety were donated to Japan through Anne's father, and are treasured as symbols of peace in the various places they are grown across the country. The radiant flowers are red as buds, but become orange and, later, light pink after they open. The roses came to the school in the spring of 2000, when Machiyo Kurokawa (1929-2011), a Tokyo Jogakkan alumna and researcher of Anne Frank, donated a bush of Anne's roses, which the school then planted on the grounds. Several students volunteered to form the 'Anne's roses executive committee' to tend the plant with care, water it three times a week, weed it and prune it. Grafting has since allowed the Anne Frank roses to multiply to more than 60 bushes. 'We couldn't have just allowed that one precious plant to wither,' recalled Takaaki Fukuhara, principal of the girls' school. School officials also organized peace education programs, which continue to this day, to help students learn about the historical background of the roses. These include tours to the Anne's Rose Church in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, and the Holocaust Education Center, Japan, in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture, to learn about the Holocaust. In the meantime, the Anne's roses executive committee has grown to around 100 students from all six grades of Tokyo Jogakkan's junior high school and senior high school divisions. 'For students of that age, history can just seem like a story in a book,' said Nobuyo Ueda, a Tokyo Jogakkan teacher in charge of the group. 'I hope that tending to Anne's roses will help the students develop awareness of peace naturally, without being forced to do so.' Rino Nakamura, a third-year senior high school student who headed the executive committee last year, said she read 'The Diary of a Young Girl' when she was in elementary school. She said that her activities have led her to believe that it is essential to seek to share happiness with others instead of just seeking happiness for oneself. Nakamura added she has also come to think of peace as an issue that concerns her personally. Haruka Minami, another third-year senior high school student, said she has been on the committee since she was in her first year of junior high school. After tending the flowers alongside her friends for six years, this will be her last year at the school to see them bloom. Minami said she tells herself, as she tends the roses, that keeping the flowers that are symbols of peace will also help keep the desire for peace alive. She said she has felt relief and joy every time she sees the roses bloom each year.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Dakota Gov. Strikes Down Conservative Bill Restricting Books For Minors
North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong (R) blocked a bill that would have required libraries to put books that feature sexually explicit material in areas that are 'not easily accessible' to minors. The bill, which would have applied to public libraries and libraries at public schools, also threatens prosecution against those that don't comply. A two-thirds vote in favor of the bill in both the state's Senate and the House could override Armstrong's veto. But it passed narrowly in both chambers with neither side of the legislature hitting the two-thirds threshold — by a 27–20 vote in the Senate in February and a 49–45 vote in the House earlier this month. 'While I recognize the concerns that led to its introduction, Senate Bill 2307 represents a misguided attempt to legislate morality through overreach and censorship,' Armstrong wrote in a Tuesday letter explaining his decision. 'The bill imposes vague and punitive burdens on professionals and opens the door to a host of unintended and damaging consequences for our communities.' 'In the last 10 years, The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, Of Mice and Men, Slaughterhouse-Five, The Kite Runner, 1984, and To Kill a Mockingbird have all been targeted by obscenity laws,' Armstrong added. 'I don't pretend to know what the next literary masterpiece is going to be. But I want it available in the library. And if a parent doesn't think it is age-appropriate for their child, then that is a parenting decision. It does not require a whole-of-government approach and $ 1.1 million of taxpayer money.' The move comes as many conservatives across the country, including President Donald Trump, attack libraries and academic freedom. It also follows former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum's decision in 2023 to veto a bill that threatened criminal prosecution against librarians and aimed to require them to screen all books in the libraries for sexually explicit content. He did, however, sign a bill into law removing books with explicit material from children's sections in libraries. North Dakota Library Association President Andrea Placher said in a statement that the association was 'very pleased' about Armstrong's veto. 'Libraries in North Dakota are experiencing increasing usage each year, with more visitors, program attendees, and library card registrations,' Placher wrote. 'The North Dakota Library Association firmly believes that SB 2307 is an unnecessary bill that would significantly hinder the operations of libraries in the state. All libraries have established policies and procedures that make this bill irrelevant.' By contrast, proponents of the bill argue that it is necessary to 'protect' children from pornography. 'We are harming our children, that's all there is to it,' Republican State Sen. Keith Boehm, a sponsor of the bill, argued in a committee hearing, according to The New York Times. 'The bill is all about protecting kids from this material. It has nothing against adults,' he added. 'To fight this battle against the pornographers, pedophiles and groomers, we must cover this issue comprehensively,' Boehm also said in another instance, according to North Dakota Monitor. 'Not every library in the state has this material, but there is enough to support this legislation.' Rep. Ben Koppelman, another sponsor of the bill, said he is 'confident that most red-state governors would have signed that bill, and we'll just be back next time around to do it again,' according to The Associated Press. North Dakota Mayor Who Sent Lewd Video To City Attorney Resigns Supreme Court Signals Support For Religious Parents Against LGBTQ+ Books Michigan Townspeople Move 9,100 Books To New Home One By One
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Dakota governor vetoes controversial library content bill
A protester displays a sign along Boulevard Avenue near the North Dakota Capitol in Bismarck as part of the national No Kings protests on April 19, 2025. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong vetoed a library content bill, calling it 'a misguided attempt to legislate morality through overreach and censorship.' The Republican said in a veto message Wednesday that Senate Bill 2307 is redundant with legislation approved two years ago and is overly burdensome for librarians, school districts and state's attorneys. 'The bill imposes vague and punitive burdens on professionals and opens the door to a host of unintended and damaging consequences for our communities,' Armstrong said. The bill narrowly passed the Senate and the House, making it unlikely that lawmakers would have enough votes to override the veto. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Keith Boehm, R-Mandan, sought to require school and public libraries to remove content deemed 'sexually explicit' to areas not easily accessible to children. It also proposed that local state's attorneys would investigate and prosecute violations, and state funds could be withheld from schools or libraries in violation. The state estimated it would cost $2 million in the first four years to implement the bill by adding an age-verification system for an online database used by North Dakota libraries. Local state's attorneys and libraries would likely see additional costs, according to testimony on the bill. Armstrong called the process in the bill 'completely unworkable.' He raised concerns about books such as 'The Diary of a Young Girl' by Anne Frank, 'The Kite Runner' and '1984' as other books that have been targeted by obscenity laws. 'I don't pretend to know what the next literary masterpiece is going to be,' Armstrong wrote. 'But I know that I want it available in a library.' About 1,000 people participated in silent protests at 17 libraries around the state in March to show their opposition to the bill. More than 2,000 people sent Armstrong messages urging him to veto the bill through an action alert by Right to Read ND, a nonpartisan group that opposed the bill. The group argued that the bill is unnecessary, expensive and violates First Amendment rights. 'This veto protects teachers and librarians in North Dakota from frivolous lawsuits and ensures they can continue to provide quality library services to their local communities,' said Randi Monley and Mariah Ralston, Right to Read ND co-chairs, in a joint statement. 'We hope the North Dakota Legislature will also listen to their constituents' concerns and sustain the governor's veto.' Opponents also said libraries already have local review processes for content that is challenged. During hearings on the bill, supporters pointed to examples of books that were challenged at local libraries but not removed. Rep. Mike Brandenburg, R-Edgeley, said his constituents wanted lawmakers to take action on library content, citing a book from the 'Heartstopper' LGBTQ+ graphic novel series that some parents objected to in the Forman school library. Former Gov. Doug Burgum vetoed a similar library content bill in the 2023 legislative session, but signed another one that required sexually explicit content to be removed from children's sections. Lawmakers would need 32 votes in the Senate and 63 votes in the House to override Armstrong's veto. The bill passed on a 27-20 vote in the Senate and 49-45 vote in the House. SB 2307 veto message signed
Chicago Tribune
08-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Biblioracle: New book on Anne Frank considers both the person and the cultural pawn she's become
Sometimes, early in the experience of reading a book, I will get a sensation that I may be in the presence of a classic. It's tough to say what triggers this sensation. I remember experiencing it while reading Isabel Wilkerson's 'The Warmth of Other Suns,' her landmark exploration of the emigration of Black Southerners to other parts of the country in the 20th century and how this remade our culture. You just get the sense that you're experiencing a rare intersection of subject and unique authorial intelligence. I had this feeling when I first started on Ruth Franklin's 'The Many Lives of Anne Frank,' and by the time I finished reading, this feeling was confirmed. This is a book that should be read and discussed for generations. It's worth wondering whether or not we needed another study of Anne Frank. There are multiple biographies of Anne Frank. The Anne Frank house in Amsterdam is one of the most visited tourist destinations in all of Europe. We also have Anne's own words from 'The Diary of a Young Girl,' compiled by her father Otto Frank after the war, which has been read by millions across dozens of languages. Franklin dives into all of this by considering Anne Frank through a series of different lenses — child, refugee, prisoner, writer, icon — in order to simultaneously bring the reader closer to Anne Frank, the real person who lived a real life, and the image of Anne Frank that has suffused society in the years since her death. At her heart, Franklin is a literary biographer — having previously published a marvelous biography of the writer Shirley Jackson ('Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life') — and her skill as an interpreter of text shines throughout the book. In the first section of the book, Franklin repeatedly brings historical analysis, primary sources and Anne Frank's writing into juxtaposition with each other in a way that both illuminates Anne Frank as an individual and the larger tragedy of the Holocaust. A recent controversy over an AI-powered Anne Frank chatbot that could not be made to condemn the Nazis who murdered her is a reminder of the danger of reducing real people into slogans. The opening chapters of Franklin's book serve as a clear corrective to the reduction of Anne Frank into a billboard icon, a smiling girl with 'Believe in people' stamped above her image. Franklin deeply admires Frank's precocity and talent and spirit, and shows us how and why we should consider her a genuine literary figure, but she also reminds us she was a girl who died of disease alongside her sister, Margot, at the Bergen-Belsen death camp. The book would be a welcome addition to the Anne Frank canon if it ended after these opening chapters, but Franklin goes on to consider the posthumous legacy of Anne Frank as a 'celebrity,' 'ambassador' and 'survivor,' the last category through the inspiration she's given other writers such as Philip Roth ('The Ghost Writer') and Shalom Auslander ('Hope: A Tragedy'), who have used Anne Frank as a jumping off point for their own creative work. A final chapter of Anne Frank as a 'pawn' in present-day geopolitical events will challenge and unsettle many readers, but this is Franklin's mission, to consider Frank in all dimensions. Produced as part of Yale University Press's Jewish Lives series, 'The Many Lives of Anne Frank' is very readable without sacrificing complexity or depth. It's a book that would satisfy anyone who has read 'The Diary of a Young Girl' or toured the annex where Anne's family and others were hidden. Read this book. You won't regret it. John Warner is the author of 'Why They Can't Write: Killing the Five-Paragraph Essay and Other Necessities.' Book recommendations from the Biblioracle John Warner tells you what to read based on the last five books you've read. 1. 'We Refuse: A Forceful History of Black Resistance' by Kellie Carter Jackson 2. 'All of Us Strangers' by Taichi Yamada 3. 'Hunting the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and the Marriage That Shook Europe' by John Guy and Julia Fox 4. 'The Hollow Half: A Memoir of Bodies and Borders' by Sarah Aziza 5. 'Maskerade: Discworld #18' by Terry Pratchett — Lesley W., Evanston I think this book is out of print, which is a shame, but libraries will have it and it can be bought used, 'You Came Back,' by Christopher Coake. 1. 'Roctogenarians' by Mo Rocca and Jonathan Greenberg 2. 'Pay Dirt' by Sara Paretsky 3. 'Horse' by Geraldine Brooks 4. 'Like a Garden' by Sara Covin Juengst 5. 'Every Day is a Good Day' by Wilma Mankiller — Beverly B., Valparaiso, Indiana 'The Round House' by Louise Erdrich is the pick for Beverly. 1. 'Hope Dies Last' by Studs Terkel 2. 'The Barn' by Wright Thompson 3. 'James' by Percival Everett 4. 'Begin Again' by Eddie Glaude Jr. 5. 'No Name in the Street' by James Baldwin — John H., Ft. Wayne, Indiana What a great list. I'm going with one of my favorite back-in-print cult classics of African American literature, 'Oreo' by Fran Ross.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
A full-scale recreation of Anne Frank's Secret Annex shows how her family lived in seclusion. Take a look.
Anne Frank famously kept a diary while hiding from the Nazis during World War II. A new exhibit in New York City features a replica of the family's Secret Annex. The full-scale recreation is furnished as it was when Anne and her family went into hiding. Anne Frank's "The Diary of a Young Girl" remains one of the most famous and powerful works of the 20th century — and one of the most poignant accounts of a young person's life during the Holocaust. Now, a new exhibit in New York City allows visitors to step inside a recreated version of the home where Anne Frank and her family once lived in complete secrecy. "Anne Frank The Exhibition," an immersive experience at the Center for Jewish History near Union Square, features a full-scale replica of the Secret Annex where Anne and her family lived in hiding in Amsterdam for two years. The annex is furnished just as it was during the Franks' years in seclusion, allowing visitors to experience the space as they did and gain a deeper understanding of the day-to-day lives of Anne, her family, and the others who lived there. "This exhibition arrives at a time when teaching the lessons of history is urgent," Ronald Leopold, the executive director of the Anne Frank House, which has partnered with the Center for Jewish History to create the exhibit, told Business Insider. "Across the United States and around the world, we are witnessing a troubling rise in antisemitism and other forms of group hatred. The Anne Frank House has always felt a deep responsibility to counter these forces through education, and this exhibition is a powerful response to that mission." Photos show inside the new exhibition in New York City. Anne Frank The Exhibit is located in Union Square in New York City. The exhibit opened to the public on January 27, 2025, on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which marked the 80th anniversary of the Auschwitz concentration and extermination camp's liberation. Frank was one of 1.5 million Jewish children killed by Nazi officials and their collaborators, the exhibit creators said. The Holocaust claimed the lives of 6 million Jewish people. Inside the exhibit, visitors can walk through a recreation of the famous bookcase entrance that concealed the Secret Annex. The exhibit is similar to the installation inside the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. However, the actual Anne Frank House is unfurnished, making this exhibit the only way to see how the annex, which occupied two full floors, an attic space, and a loft inside the home, would have looked between 1942 and 1944. The rooms are fully recreated and furnished to scale according to how they looked when the Franks lived there. Anne was 13 when she moved to the Annex with her mother, Edith; her father, Otto; and her older sister, Margot, 16. Four others also lived with them: Hermann and Auguste van Pels, their 15-year-old son Peter, and Fritz Pfeffer, a dentist. The New York City exhibition spans over 7,500 square feet of gallery space between the recreated rooms and a separate space with photographs and other artifacts. "The recreated Annex is not just a historical space; it is a gateway to understanding the past and, crucially, learning from it," Leopold told BI. "As we move further into the 21st century, it is imperative to find ways to engage new generations with Anne's story. While rooted in a specific historical moment, her experiences resonate far beyond her time, speaking to our shared humanity and the moral choices we all face," he continued. "This exhibition does more than remember Anne; it challenges each visitor to reflect on how history can inform our responses to hatred and injustice in our own communities today." The Franks went into hiding in the summer of 1942 and were joined a week later by the Van Pels family. The Franks, who had left Germany for Amsterdam in the 1930s, moved into the Secret Annex, as it came to be known, after Margot received a summons to report to a labor camp in Germany. The entrance was located behind a bookcase in the back of Otto Frank's office building. The ground floor of the office building was used as a workshop for the Pectacon company, which sold herbs and spices, and the first and second floors were used as storage and office space. A staircase was later constructed to lead from the main house's first floor to the second floor. It opened out onto a landing where, when the Franks entered into hiding, a revolving bookcase was placed in front of a door that entered into the annex. The annex's inhabitants lived there for two years in complete secrecy, aside from a small number of helpers who provided them with food and other supplies. The families lived primarily on the second and third floors of the building, above the warehouse on the ground floor and office building on the first floor. A few members of the office staff, known as the "helpers," knew about the people hiding in the annex and helped to conceal them from the warehouse workers and outsiders. The annex had a kitchen, a bathroom, and rooms that could be converted into bedrooms at night. The bathroom had a sink and toilet, which the eight inhabitants shared, requiring them to take turns using them in the morning and at night. At night, the kitchen and dining room was converted into Hermann and Auguste van Pels' bedroom. During the day, the bedroom of Otto, Edith, and Margot Frank acted as the Frank family's living room. Space was limited inside the annex, so it was vital for the inhabitants to rely on each other for support and to share the space peacefully. In the morning, the families had to wear socks and be as quiet as possible so as not to tip off the warehouse or office workers about their movements. The family enjoyed a quick reprieve during the weekday lunch break, when the helpers would come up to the annex for lunch and discuss the latest news from the war. In the afternoon, the family would nap or do quiet activities like reading or writing. After the workday ended around 6 p.m., the annex inhabitants were able to move freely about the entire office building. A standard evening inside the annex involved Otto Frank writing business letters on the typewriter and Margot and Anne doing various chores around the house. The two older women would also cook dinner for everyone in hiding using the supplies brought to them by the helpers, according to the Anne Frank House. However, as the war raged on and access to high-quality food dwindled, food became less and less appetizing to the family, and especially to Anne. "Blech, the mere thought that I have to eat that swill makes me nauseated," she wrote in her diary, according to the Anne Frank House. After dinner, the families would relax by reading, conversing, or listening to the radio before transforming their living areas into bedrooms. When the sun set, the windows would also be blacked out in order to conceal the family moving about the annex, and they would all have to be silent again. Anne Frank shared a room with Fritz Pfeffer, who was the same age as her father. The pair fought over the use of the writing desk. Anne, a spirited teenager, felt that desk time should be split evenly between herself and Pfeffer, but he disagreed. Otto eventually intervened in the conflict over the writing desk, which Frank wrote about in her diary. "Pfeffer looked very sullen, didn't talk to me for two days and made a point of sitting at the table from 5 to 5.30 anyway... childish, of course," she wrote, according to the Anne Frank House. Peter, the van Pels' teenage son, was the only inhabitant to have their own room in the annex. Much is speculated about Peter and Anne's relationship. She wrote that she wasn't very fond of him when he and his family first moved into the annex. However, a romantic spark soon developed between the pair, who were both longing for someone to talk to about their circumstances. She had her first kiss with him on the bed of his small room below the annex's attic. In addition to the fully recreated annex, there are photos of the family and the war at the exhibition. The exhibition includes more than 100 original collection items, from Anne Frank's first photo album to handwritten verses written by Anne Frank in her friends' poetry albums. The exhibit is the first opportunity for the public to see what the annex would have looked like completely furnished. Otto Frank, the annex's sole survivor, famously refused to refurnish the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. "After the Anne Frank House had been restored, they asked me if I wanted to have the rooms refurnished. But I said, 'No. They took everything out during the war, and I want to keep it that way,'" he said in an interview in 1962, according to the Anne Frank House. The executive director of the Anne Frank House says this historic exhibition is crucial today amid rising antisemitism. "The exhibition provides perspectives, geared toward younger generations, that are certain to deepen our collective understanding of Anne Frank and hopefully provide a better understanding of ourselves," Leopold said in a statement. "By bringing this exhibition to New York — a place with many ties to Anne's story — the Anne Frank House is expanding the reach of our work to encourage more people to remember Anne Frank, reflect on her life story, and respond by standing against antisemitism and hatred in their own communities." Read the original article on Business Insider
