Intellectual censorship has reared its head time and time again throughout history. When the powerful feel the threat of the people, they’re quick to limit access to information that runs counter to their narrow hegemonic values. Book bans (and burnings) are a time honored tradition of these spineless oppressors. Over the past few years, we’ve seen a proliferation of them across the country. In the Age of the Internet, these bans feel particularly performative—a symbolic gesture that spits in the face of the First Amendment. With this series, we shine a light on work that has been adapted from banned books or banned authors in the state of Iowa.

Based on the book by Alex Haley and Malcolm X, Spike Lee tells the epic biographical tale of one of the most heroic figures of the twentieth century—from a childhood suffering under white supremacist violence to the petty crime of his youth into his conversion to Islam and his radical fight for Black liberation. Anchored by an electrifying performance from Denzel Washington as the fearless fighter, Malcolm X stands as a testament to a cultural icon whose life remains emblematic of a principled resistance that resonates just as strongly today as we celebrate his centenary as it did during an earlier era of tumult.