Second translator of the wrong color dropped by publisher

Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book rewritten, every picture has been repainted, every statue and street and building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And the process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the party is always right.

George Orwell, he/his/him

A writer hired to translate Amanda Gorman's poem "The Hill We Climb" into Catalan said he has been removed from the position by publisher Univers.

Victor Obiols, whose previous work includes Catalan translations of William Shakespeare and Oscar Wilde, told CNN Thursday that the commission was initially approved by Gorman's representatives, but they later decided he wasn't right for the job.

It is the second such case in Europe in the past month, after a Dutch writer stepped back from their commission in February after anger that a Black writer was not chosen.

Although Univers has not yet responded to CNN's request for comment on its decision, Obiols said Gorman's representatives were looking for "someone matching the profile of the original writer".

"I think this is a reflection of the dynamics of muting or not promoting what is politically incorrect", he said, explaining that the Barcelona-based publisher informed him of the decision after he had delivered the translation.

Obiols told CNN that he thought the decision to revoke his commission was down to the pressure of US social movements.

"I understand the political dimension of the decision", he said. "I feel solidarity with women and Black people".

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Second translator of the wrong color dropped by publisher

Hard to find cross-cultural bridge builders of the correct race, still too many whites in Europe