When it comes to the material students are taught in schools, it’s understandable that some parents would be concerned with what their children will be shown when they’re not around. But in recent years, the right-wing-led fight for “parental rights” has spiraled into full-on book bannings as they try to remove “unsuitable” books from schools and libraries. And, of course, their idea of what’s unsuitable ranges from books that address LGBTQ+ issues, changing bodies, and very basic elements of U.S. and world history.
The war between letting children enjoy and learn from literature, and sheltering them from the world keeps spinning out of control. The latest casualty is a Texas middle school teacher who was recently fired for assigning an illustrated version of Anne Frank’s diary to her eighth grade reading class.
A ‘rogue’ book assignment
According to local news outlet KFDM, a spokesperson for Hamshire-Fannett ISD released a statement confirming the teacher was sent home on Wednesday after reading a passage from Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation.
Mike Canizales, the Communications/Community Engagement Coordinator, told the outlet, “The District is currently in the process of posting the position to secure a high-quality, full-time teacher as quickly as possible. During this period of transition, our administrators and curriculum team will provide heightened support and monitoring in the reading class to ensure continuity in instruction.”
Anne Frank was a German-born Jewish teenager who documented her life living in an attic hiding from the Nazis in the Netherlands in a diary for more than two years until she and her family were discovered. Her diary was first published back in 1947 and has been used for decades as part of curricula on the Holocaust.
Though Frank’s diary has been used as a learning tool for a while, most versions of it omit sections in which she wrote about sexuality. The 2018 graphic novel adapted by Ari Folman and illustrated by David Polonsky, remains faithful to Frank’s original text and includes pages where Frank wrote about genitalia.
Amy Manuel, a Hamshire-Fannett ISD parent of eighth graders who were assigned the book, spoke to KFDM about the incident stating, “I mean it’s bad enough, she’s having them read this for an assignment, but then she also is making them read it aloud and making a little girl talk about feeling each other’s breasts and when she sees a female she goes into ecstasy, that’s not ok.”
Hamshire-Fannett officials claim the graphic novel of Anne Frank’s diary was not approved for students, but it still appeared on the reading list sent to parents at the start of the school year. So while the district is implying the teacher went above their heads and gave the book out with no warning, some parents believe some officials had to know about the book being part of the class, which is why there’s now an ongoing investigation about the matter.
As a parent, I understand not wanting your children to read or see materials that you believe are unsuitable for them. However, this book in particular isn’t inappropriate or pornographic; it’s staying true to a historical text written by a real person. We also have to ask why the overwhelming majority of material these parents find objectionable has to do with LGBTQ+ subjects.
History lessons are being erased in this country day by day and it’s a bit frightening to think about what history classes will be like in school in the near future. I don’t believe the Hamshire-Fannett teacher was trying to do anything but have her students learn about and discuss the horrors Frank, her family, and millions of other Jewish people went through during World War II. You don’t have to like the book, but firing someone over teaching real history is just wrong.
(featured image: Nestea06/Getty Images)
