Question

Read the excerpt from “Take the Tortillas Out of Your Poetry.”

In other cases, the censoring has been direct and brutal. On February 28, 1981 the morning newspaper carried a story about the burning of my novel, Bless Me, Ultima. The book was banned from high school classes in Bloomfield, New Mexico, and a school board member was quoted as saying: “We took the books out and personally saw that they were burned.”

Which best describes how Anaya effectively uses rhetorical appeal to convince readers that censorship is a tool of the powerful?
Anaya uses words that lack emotional connotations to present a painful anecdote from his life.
Anaya presents facts from a newspaper story about school board members burning his books.
Anaya establishes his credibility as a published Chicano author by referring to his first novel.
Anaya delivers a passionate argument against the ability of school boards to ban books.

Answer 1

Anaya presents facts from a newspaper story about school board members burning his books.

This choice best fits because the passage cites a dated news report and a direct quote showing school officials physically removing and burning the books, using concrete evidence to demonstrate how those in power can enforce censorship.