TheFire.org’s recent article by Ronald K. L. Collins featuring my upcoming picture book, We Sing from the Heart: How the Slants®  Took Their Fight for Free Speech to the Supreme Court by Mia Wenjen, illustrated by Victor Bizar Gomez (Red Comet Press, Fall 2024).

Forthcoming children’s book on The Slants — the band that fought the law and won!

• Mia Wenjen (author) and Victor Bizar Gómez (illustrator), “We Sing from the Heart: How The Slants® Took Their Fight for Free Speech to the Supreme Court” (Red Comet Press, Sept. 10, 2024)

Music is a way to transcend cultures and divides. Simon Tam used his band’s name, The Slants, to make a powerful statement that racist insults could no longer be hurtful to Asian Americans. But then the U.S. Trade and Patent Office tries to stop him. In his eight-year battle to win trademark protection, Simon would go all the way to the Supreme Court in a landmark case (that included Ruth Bader Ginsberg) to rout out structural racism in our government systems.

Written with the full collaboration of Simon Tam, Mia Wenjen takes us back to Simon’s early days and the formation of the band, to the long battle to claim the name they chose to use. We learn of his motivations and the years-long struggle that leads ultimately to the Supreme Court of the United States. Told using lyrics from the band’s hit song about their trademark fight, this compelling story will keep readers riveted until the dramatic ending. We Sing from the Heart gives background and context to the significance of Simon’s quest, not just for him and his band, but for free speech rights for us all. Newcomer to children’s books, Victor Bizar Gómez, channels the indie music world with dynamic artwork that complements the storytelling and is sure to draw in readers with his exciting graphic approach. Includes a foreword by Simon Tam.

Related

• Matal v. Tam (2017)
• “The Slants Live!,”TEDxBend (2017)

WATCH: The Slants perform a couple of their songs, including one written about their experience with the Supreme Court.