In cased you missed it, author Joyce Carol Oates retweeted a photo of a banner at Mississippi State University that featured Mississippi author William Faulkner and said, “So funny! If Mississippians read, Faulkner would be banned.”
So funny! If Mississippians read, Faulkner would be banned. https://t.co/vK7EEBxmOX
— Joyce Carol Oates (@JoyceCarolOates) October 18, 2017
If you’ve lived here long enough or know anything about southern literary history, you know that Mississippians read, and some of us even write! Of course, her tweet created a firestorm on Twitter with more than 1,200 replies. Here are some of the highlights.
1. I'm a Mississippian.
2. I'm a writer.
3. That's my university library that I have used since I was 9 years old to borrow books…— Simone Cottrell (@Sim1_Says) October 18, 2017
— Amy Tate (@AmyTate01) October 18, 2017
— Knol Aust (@knolaust) October 18, 2017
2 years ago she got mad at Spielberg for hunting after seeing a picture from the Jurassic Park set. https://t.co/cVrtdDHtRm
— Andréa Brittane (@ahn_dray_uh) October 19, 2017
Perhaps you are unaware that a Mississippian is a finalist for this year's National Book Award–@jesmimi .
— Cristen Hemmins (@CristenHemmins) October 18, 2017
https://twitter.com/jelenawoehr/status/920855183151677440
https://twitter.com/jelenawoehr/status/920855941100142592
— Farce the Music (@Farcethemusic) October 18, 2017
Anyone bless her heart yet?
— JGH (@Hubb57) October 18, 2017
— Riley (@rileycat19) October 18, 2017
Some of my favorite authors: Eudora Welty, Donna Tartt, Willie Morris, Walker Percy, Shelby Foote…oh, wait! They're all from Mississippi.
— Melanie Tucker (@MelanieTucker2) October 18, 2017
Surely the irony of suggesting Mississippians don’t read while discussing a Mississippian Nobel laureate isn’t lost on you.
— DJ Fallon (@dj_fallon) October 18, 2017
1. We read.
2. We write.
3. We have electricity.
4. We have indoor plumbing.
5. We have problems.
6. Just like the rest of the world. https://t.co/nBUmck0nlz— Marshall Ramsey (@MarshallRamsey) October 18, 2017
Hmmmm. Sounds like you don't know what you're talking about.
— Square Books (@SquareBooks) October 18, 2017
Wow. I spend my days trying to combat this kind of ignorance and hurtful commentary from students–didn't expect to see it coming from you.
— McCracken Library (@MCLibrary735) October 18, 2017
As a WNY'er who lives in MS now, I invite you to @MSLibraryComm and @MSLibraryAssoc #mslib2017 to meet the librarians keeping reading alive.
— L.Ellinwood (@lmellinwood2) October 19, 2017
— MSLibrary Commission (@MSLibraryComm) October 19, 2017
I’m a Mississippian. I read. I write, too. Check the NYT list for the past 32 weeks. Please don’t make assumptions about us all. Thank you. https://t.co/sYAOOCZxXy
— Angie Thomas (@angiecthomas) October 18, 2017
Jesmyn Ward had one of the best responses to Oates’ tweet:
I neglect twitter for a day and come back to find my entire state maligned and accused of illiteracy.
— Jesmyn Ward (@jesmimi) October 19, 2017
And lot of people replied with this photo from the Mississippi, Believe It campaign:
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