Last week, the Biloxi, Mississippi, school board
made the decision to remove Harper Lee's classic novel, "To Kill A Mockingbird" from its 8th grade curriculum.
According to Kenny Holloway, the vice president of the school board, announced, "There is some language that makes people uncomfortable, and we can teach the same lesson with other books. It's still in our library. But they're going to use another book in the eighth-grade course."
Lee's novel, published in 1960, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and when adapted into a movie, it received an Oscar. The book has sold over 40 million copies and been translated into 10 languages.
Yet the Biloxi School Board is concerned that this novel "makes people uncomfortable." That's exactly right, and that's what it was intended to do. Since when has the goal of education been to make students feel comfortable.
"To Kill A Mockingbird" is an important book for our times, addressing issues of racial inequality which are clearly evident in our society today.
If you agree that the Biloxi School Board has made a huge mistake, in taking away this crucial piece of literature from its 8th graders, please sign our petition asking the Board to restore "To Kill A Mockingbird" to their curriculum.
