Willy Wonka not canceled after all: Publisher backtracks on 'woke' edits

One can chalk up a huge loss this week for "wokism."

That's the concept that everything in the world has to be in alignment with the politically correct, the socially acceptable, LGBT and abortion ideologies.

It's happened after the corporation in the United Kingdom that owns the rights to Roald Dahl's books, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" among others, decided it would edit all of those writings to conform them to "wokeness."

The public backlash was huge.

And just as abruptly, the company announced it was reversing course.

"We’ve listened to the debate over the past week which has reaffirmed the extraordinary power of Roald Dahl’s books and the very real questions around how stories from another era can be kept relevant for each new generation," announced Francesca Dow, the managing director of Penguin Random House Children's. "As a children’s publisher, our role is to share the magic of stories with children with the greatest thought and care. Roald Dahl's fantastic books are often the first stories young children will read independently, and taking care for the imaginations and fast-developing minds of young readers is both a privilege and a responsibility."

A report at Washington Examiner explained that it was the U.K.'s Puffin U.K. that released a statement it would publish two editions of Dahl's books, "one that maintains the original language and another with the editorial changes that included eliminating entire sentences and replacing gendered language."

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Puffin Announce Roald Dahl Classic collection to keep author’s classic texts in print pic.twitter.com/oOqaWNbzV7

— Ed Cumming (@edcumming) February 24, 2023

The report explained Dahl's books use unacceptable language such as "fat" and "men" and the publisher claimed those had to be eliminated to be acceptable.

"Some books saw descriptions and sentences entirely deleted or changed to language that had no connection to the original text," the report explained." The publisher will now release two editions of Dahl's books, which include well-known titles such as "Matilda," "James and the Giant Peach," and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

The originals will appear under the Penguin banner, and the "socially acceptable" edited versions under another name.

The announcement confirmed readers "will be free to choose which version of Dahl's stories they prefer."

Francesca Dow, of Penguin, said, "We have proudly published Roald Dahl's stories for more than 40 years in partnership with the Roald Dahl Story Company. Their mischievous spirit and his unique storytelling genius have delighted the imaginations of readers across many generations."

That, however, apparently wasn't good enough, under the company's recent announcement. But that decision, to censor Dahl, apparently was a failure, too.

The "woke" agenda has been growing quickly across America, used by those who advocate for racism being taught in schools, race-based policies being imposed on society, and even financial "reparations" being paid to those who say they are of a disfavored race.

The New York Post, however, warned just months ago that while the idea "began with noble intentions – to raise public consciousness about the enduring impact of racism, sexism and inequality" – it now is "a severe form of political correctness, forced upon the public, with little tolerance for argument or debate."

The report explained, "The 'woke' insisted that people of color be called 'BIPOC,' artistic license be deemed 'cultural appropriation,' and Latinos be referred to as the gender-neutral 'LatinX' — a term few Hispanics like and almost never use. Gender itself was declared to be as elastic and expansive as possible, along with an endless array of pronouns to express every sexual identity. Embraced by progressive politicians and enshrined in Democratic platforms, anyone who questioned — or felt mildly curious about — these commandments was mocked, ridiculed and ultimately canceled."

EDITOR’S NOTE: Long the world’s most Christian nation, America today is being taken over by a new “official” national religion, one being imposed on the entire populace by every major societal institution, from government, media and big tech, to academia, entertainment and business.

This new state religion is Wokeism. “Going woke” conjures up visions of someone claiming to be acutely sensitive (“awake”) to “systemic social and political injustice.” And not just alleged bigotry against blacks, but toward every other “minority” as well, from LGBT folk – especially everything transgender and “nonbinary” – to “undocumented immigrants.” All of them, being VICTIMS, intrinsically more virtuous than the shameful oppressor class: primarily heterosexual white males.

This new “woke” consciousness has turned America upside-down – from the nationwide Antifa and Black Lives Matter riots in 2020, to tearing down of historic monuments, to demanding multi-million-dollar reparation payments for blacks, to appointing transgenders as top government officials, to rampant reverse discrimination in every area of life, to the U.S. military imposing mandatory “diversity training” and transgender pronoun use on all personnel, causing recruitment to disastrously plummet.

Yet there is hope. Being “saved” – which in Wokeism is called being “woke” – is largely a matter of worshipping victimhood by becoming an “ally” and “defender” of all the many victim classes, and a determined enemy of the straight white male oppressor class. Thus, “joining the righteous” as an ally – even if one is cursed to be a straight white male – opens the door mercifully for salvation, even to the most wretched.

That is the power of the religion of Wokeism. And it’s explored as never before in the February 2023 issue of WND’s critically acclaimed monthly Whistleblower magazine. If you’ve ever wondered, for example, exactly how the most radical elements in American society are successfully pressuring the biggest corporations into adopting the most outrageous and immoral policies imaginable, even when doing so permanently damages and devalues the company, the stunning answers are in this issue of Whistleblower, titled “WOKEISM: AMERICA’S OFFICIAL STATE RELIGION.”

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