To Kill A Mockingbird :: Too Uncomfortable of a Read?
Watch the October 23rd broadcast of Prime News
In Mississippi, the Biloxi School Board has pulled To Kill A MockingBird from an 8th grade reading list because it received complaints about “wording” in the book making people uncomfortable.
This tweet sums up my thoughts so succinctly. Arne Duncan, the education secretary during most of President Barack Obama’s administration, said on Twitter – “When school districts remove “To Kill A Mockingbird” from the reading list, we know we have real problems.”
Blackish actor and the very funny comedian Deon Cole tweeted “If to kill a mockingbird makes you uncomfortable, you should probably be reading to kill a mockingbird.”
I wish I could do impressions because I can totally hear his voice saying that.
Agreed, Deon. Agreed. So what the N word is used?
This book is a great tale of racial injustice, the faults of our criminal justice system, the complexity and realities of the historical shaping of rape as a concept in this nation…..and dagnabit, every kid needs to know about Boo Radley, okay? My first few times reading this book, I was focused on Boo Radley. Forget what’s going on in this court room, we need to see what Boo is up to, okay? To this day, I’m a little skeptical of Mr. Radley. LOLOL
The point is that there are many ways lessons can be taught, but focusing on comfort level is the least wisest consideration especially with regard to how well To Kill A Mocking Bird teaches those lessons in story form to young and old readers, alike. – @Trezanay
