North Carolina superintendent abruptly removes MLK-themed novel from 10th grade class
popular.info
An acclaimed MLK-themed novel was removed from a 10th-grade English class in North Carolina. Haywood County Superintendent Dr. Bill Nolte told Popular Information that he pulled the book, Dear Martin by Nic Stone, in a matter of hours after receiving one parent complaint. Nolte said he did not read the book — or even obtain a copy — prior to making the decision.
The Republican position on the educational system can be summed up thusly: "Guns in schools are not only fine, they should be required. Books that IN ANY WAY mention sexuality and/or profanity, no way!"
His history reveals that his decision was made because it was a book about minorities; he did not care about the language. (Mr. Reeves didn’t either & was simply trying to wield power).
Any parent can launch a complaint & kick off the absolutely nonsense process of immediate removal by a single decision. Time for liberal parents to play the same game & complain about all of the books we have in schools that honor & praise slave owners (oops, presidents) & other things that might make minority children “uncomfortable.”
**The fact that Nolte dared note picking cotton was about INCOME for his family & not race, is shockingly stupid as the difference is there was neither INCOME nor CHOICE provided to slaves who were forced to pick cotton or black sharecroppers who were robbed of the wages they were promised for picking cotton. Idiot.
Citing 'profanity' as an issue with 10th graders just reveals how ignorant people and parents are of their own children. The rest is just the desperate acts of people who know their time is done and are refusing to accept it.
“In protest, five out of the district's 380 9th-graders were pulled from the class by their parents.” That seems like a more appropriate response than preventing the other 375 from reading it.
Judd, how about an deep dive into why administrators and politicians give in to loud minorities. Why are we so quick to cave into these people and give them their way? Is the silence of the rest of us to blame? Political correctness?
Other than Mockingbird, I haven’t read any of the books cited so I don’t have an informed opinion about those writings in particular. The issue I’ll take up is allowing one parent’s complaint to be the last and only straw required to get a book banned. If another parent demands its return to the classroom, will it be? I would hope a group of parents would speak loudly in disagreement with Nolte in solidarity with the teacher who wasn’t consulted and most importantly to set an example for the students who will be embarrassed now but appreciate it later. BTW I read Mockingbird in 11th grade (mid-1970’s) and it remains one of the few impactful pieces of literature I’ve ever read and I had an English/history double major in undergrad. Anyone who didn’t have the chance to see the Broadway play missed a riveting show. The original cast is going to reopen it I believe and I couldn’t recommend it more.
If my mother had ever tried to stop me from reading something while I was in school, it would have told me she didn't trust me to think about the subject and make up my own mind. (I still would have read it, she just wouldn't have known about it). I don't doubt that's what the children of these parents are taking away from these incidents. I'm much older now than my mother was then, but if somebody were to offer me a bet that the kids that are having these books removed from their classes aren't turning around and reading those books on their own, I'd have to take their money.
Part and parcel of the Minority Rule takeover by the GOP. Give the ignorant shrill something else to think about and a platform to scream on: School Board meetings. State legislatures are 43 controlled by Republicans. Teacher tip lines, banned books all crazy like a fox to keep the right wing and Evangelicals on a tear to stop this horrendous education of the young minds! Good Ol Steve Bannon is dabbling in North Carolina like he did in Virginia.
I love the comment that the book is one-sided. Everything taught about police and policing is one-sided. Rather, (it sounds like) the book lays out a different view of what policing looks like to far too many.
In the face of a life threatening pandemic, Republicans have eschewed the advanced mRNA vaccines—promoting instead ingesting horse de-wormer, bleach, and their own urine.
This controversy over reading seems to bloom like algae every few years and then fades back into obscurity after being roundly regaled for its ignorance. "Communism versus Capitalism" "Catcher in the Rye" the bible, "Rocky Horror", "The Texas 800" - all seem to enjoy their days in the sun before some new Potemkin arises to give the villagers a target. Our national steam engine would falter without the energy created by periodic torpedoing of the container ships of stupid arriving dockside daily.
After seeing this post, I checked out 'Dear Martin' from the library and read it. It is an excellent book, very well written and insightful into the human beings it portrays. The violence and swearing in it is no worse than what our teenagers see and hear in their schools and in the news. There is far worse violence and sexuality in the Bible, although you might not know that unless you read it. I say all this as a parent of a 19 year old, a former high school teacher, and a person who reads both the news and the Bible.
As far as I can tell, the adults objecting to 'Dear Martin' are mainly offended by the book's greatest virtue: it offers a sympathetic portrayal of marginalized people.
The same is true for Maus, a graphic (as in drawings) novel about the Holocaust recently yanked from 8th graders in McMillan County, Tennessee. A few swears and some naked mice - the alleged sins of that book - are hardly a real problem. In both cases, some people claim to be afraid that "this happens/happened" will traumatize their white children with guilt. What they are really afraid of, is that their white children will grow up determined not to be a party to it happening again.
Hey! Not reading a book is how Ulysses got uncensored thank you very much. The pendulum swings both ways, but I haven't read the other so I don't know.
The Republican position on the educational system can be summed up thusly: "Guns in schools are not only fine, they should be required. Books that IN ANY WAY mention sexuality and/or profanity, no way!"
His history reveals that his decision was made because it was a book about minorities; he did not care about the language. (Mr. Reeves didn’t either & was simply trying to wield power).
Any parent can launch a complaint & kick off the absolutely nonsense process of immediate removal by a single decision. Time for liberal parents to play the same game & complain about all of the books we have in schools that honor & praise slave owners (oops, presidents) & other things that might make minority children “uncomfortable.”
**The fact that Nolte dared note picking cotton was about INCOME for his family & not race, is shockingly stupid as the difference is there was neither INCOME nor CHOICE provided to slaves who were forced to pick cotton or black sharecroppers who were robbed of the wages they were promised for picking cotton. Idiot.
Ohhhh noooo—“they said their child read a book with the word “damn” in it during the break between active shooter drills?”
Sara Lazarus
Citing 'profanity' as an issue with 10th graders just reveals how ignorant people and parents are of their own children. The rest is just the desperate acts of people who know their time is done and are refusing to accept it.
“In protest, five out of the district's 380 9th-graders were pulled from the class by their parents.” That seems like a more appropriate response than preventing the other 375 from reading it.
Judd, how about an deep dive into why administrators and politicians give in to loud minorities. Why are we so quick to cave into these people and give them their way? Is the silence of the rest of us to blame? Political correctness?
Thanks, Joe Picardi
Other than Mockingbird, I haven’t read any of the books cited so I don’t have an informed opinion about those writings in particular. The issue I’ll take up is allowing one parent’s complaint to be the last and only straw required to get a book banned. If another parent demands its return to the classroom, will it be? I would hope a group of parents would speak loudly in disagreement with Nolte in solidarity with the teacher who wasn’t consulted and most importantly to set an example for the students who will be embarrassed now but appreciate it later. BTW I read Mockingbird in 11th grade (mid-1970’s) and it remains one of the few impactful pieces of literature I’ve ever read and I had an English/history double major in undergrad. Anyone who didn’t have the chance to see the Broadway play missed a riveting show. The original cast is going to reopen it I believe and I couldn’t recommend it more.
If my mother had ever tried to stop me from reading something while I was in school, it would have told me she didn't trust me to think about the subject and make up my own mind. (I still would have read it, she just wouldn't have known about it). I don't doubt that's what the children of these parents are taking away from these incidents. I'm much older now than my mother was then, but if somebody were to offer me a bet that the kids that are having these books removed from their classes aren't turning around and reading those books on their own, I'd have to take their money.
All I can do is shake my head.
Part and parcel of the Minority Rule takeover by the GOP. Give the ignorant shrill something else to think about and a platform to scream on: School Board meetings. State legislatures are 43 controlled by Republicans. Teacher tip lines, banned books all crazy like a fox to keep the right wing and Evangelicals on a tear to stop this horrendous education of the young minds! Good Ol Steve Bannon is dabbling in North Carolina like he did in Virginia.
I love the comment that the book is one-sided. Everything taught about police and policing is one-sided. Rather, (it sounds like) the book lays out a different view of what policing looks like to far too many.
How about an article detailing the owners of the media who hold far right views. Besides Fox, who else is there? Thanks.
In the face of a life threatening pandemic, Republicans have eschewed the advanced mRNA vaccines—promoting instead ingesting horse de-wormer, bleach, and their own urine.
They’re pro-ignorance.
This controversy over reading seems to bloom like algae every few years and then fades back into obscurity after being roundly regaled for its ignorance. "Communism versus Capitalism" "Catcher in the Rye" the bible, "Rocky Horror", "The Texas 800" - all seem to enjoy their days in the sun before some new Potemkin arises to give the villagers a target. Our national steam engine would falter without the energy created by periodic torpedoing of the container ships of stupid arriving dockside daily.
After seeing this post, I checked out 'Dear Martin' from the library and read it. It is an excellent book, very well written and insightful into the human beings it portrays. The violence and swearing in it is no worse than what our teenagers see and hear in their schools and in the news. There is far worse violence and sexuality in the Bible, although you might not know that unless you read it. I say all this as a parent of a 19 year old, a former high school teacher, and a person who reads both the news and the Bible.
As far as I can tell, the adults objecting to 'Dear Martin' are mainly offended by the book's greatest virtue: it offers a sympathetic portrayal of marginalized people.
The same is true for Maus, a graphic (as in drawings) novel about the Holocaust recently yanked from 8th graders in McMillan County, Tennessee. A few swears and some naked mice - the alleged sins of that book - are hardly a real problem. In both cases, some people claim to be afraid that "this happens/happened" will traumatize their white children with guilt. What they are really afraid of, is that their white children will grow up determined not to be a party to it happening again.
Hey! Not reading a book is how Ulysses got uncensored thank you very much. The pendulum swings both ways, but I haven't read the other so I don't know.
Dr. Bill Nolte needs to lose his job!