Plato too progressive for Texas. The university removes the philosopher's works from the reading list

Plato fell victim to the culture wars on campuses, writes the Washington Post in an editorial. Texas A&M University (TAMU) removed the philosopher's texts from its reading list as part of a campaign against the woke movement.

The university authorities carried out a thorough review of the recommended reading material following allegations made by the administration of US President Donald Trump regarding failure to respect its guidelines regarding content related – in its opinion – to gender ideology.

Ultimatum for a philosophy professor or censorship?

A philosophy lecturer at TAMU, Professor Martin Peterson, was informed that in the second semester, which began on Monday, he was to remove Plato's “Symposium” from his reading list, and if he did not comply with this order, he would Philosophy classes will be assigned to someone else – reports the Washington Post.

“Exercising control over the material used during classes may satisfy (…) the White House or culture warriors on the right and left, but it will not benefit students,” the daily comments; adds that In addition to withdrawing Plato, the university has identified approximately 200 course topics to be withdrawn or revised..

Plato's texts are of fundamental importance for understanding Western civilization – the Washington Post concludes.

A review of 200 “forbidden” books

At the end of 2025, the Associated Press reported that Florida education authorities published a list of over 700 books that were removed from school libraries or banned from being borrowed as a result of the introduction of a new law allowing parents to interfere with school book collections.

The list of prohibited items includes, among others: classics of American literature such as:

• “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” by Mark Twain,
• “For Whom the Bell Tolls” by Ernest Hemingway
• “The Song of Solomon” by Nobel Prize winner Toni Morrison.

Shakespeare yes, but only in fragments

Hillsborough County, Florida has allowed students to reading only fragments of William Shakespeare's most important plays due to the “sexual” themes appearing in them. County officials have told schools that only specific passages from “Macbeth,” “Hamlet” and “Romeo and Juliet” can be discussed in lessons.

In 2024, the American Library Association (ALA) released a report showing that in the US, libraries are banned from providing more and more books; censorship is increasing. From January to August 2023, 695 materials were challenged by local, state or school authorities and 1,915 titles were banned. (PAP)

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