As a long-time member and officer, and past president (1997-99) of the Society of Midland Authors, I am happy to share the announcement below concerning our declaration on freedom of expression and of the press, and the Declaration itself. This declaration was the result of a good deal of hard work and discussion among board members since January, triggered by serious, even dire, concerns about recent trends and Trump administration actions to erase history and silence dissent. In contrast to the longer blog posts I have typically written myself, I choose to limit my comments and simply present the press release and declaration of my colleagues. I am also limiting hyperlinks to the one above that connects readers to the website of the Midland Authors. The title of this post is the title of the statement they have chosen to release. I first provide their press announcement, then the Declaration.
Book authors declare our times require a vigorous defense of First Amendment right of free speech and free expression
“The Society of Midland Authors today published a declaration spelling out to the American public troubling government assaults on writing and journalism and even to the availability of uncensored books,” said Dick Simpson, a past president of the society and a current member of its board.
“Books are part of the free press,” Simpson said. “Yet increasingly we have seen books banned from school libraries, public libraries, and archival sites,” Simpson said as he described the SMA’s declaration. “History has been rewritten in textbooks, websites, and public displays. Civil servants have been dismissed defending literature, journalism, and facts, he continued.
“A free press is promised to all Americans by our Constitution, as one of the cornerstone guarantees of the First Amendment, which states that “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.
“To those ends, we continue our ongoing commitment to writing and writers. We believe in our Constitution. We vociferously remind every level of government of those principles, at this pivotal marker in our 250-year history.”
The Society of Midland Authors, which was founded in 1915, is an association of published authors from twelve American states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
This is the text of the SMA Declaration:
Declaration of Authors’ Rights and Freedom of the Press
Marking the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, we as an organization of authors from twelve Midwestern states feel compelled at this time to restate the importance of the writings in the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.
As part of “We the People,” we raise our voices to support, defend, and celebrate the bedrock American freedoms of expression, opinion, and an unfettered press. Simultaneously, we denounce encroachment on those rights. As authors, we know words matter.
Freedom of the press should not be subject to governmental whims or fears that such exercises would upset those in power. So says the Declaration of Independence from July 4, 1776.
We abhor governmental assaults on writing, journalism, and the availability of what we hold sacred: books.
Yet increasingly we have seen books banned from school libraries, public libraries, and archival sites. History has been rewritten in textbooks, websites, and public displays by those who are not historians. Civil servants have been dismissed defending literature, journalism, and facts.
Books are part of the free press. A free press is promised to all Americans by our Constitution, as one of the cornerstone guarantees of the First Amendment, which states that “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.”
To those ends, we continue our ongoing commitment to writing and writers, back to our nation’s guiding documents. We believe in our Constitution. We vociferously remind every level of government of those principles, at this pivotal marker in our 250-year history.
Declared by the Board of Directors of The Society of Midland Authors.
March 2026
Jim Schwab