In an interview with PBS station WTTW Chicago last night, Barbara Jones, Executive Director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, of the Chicago Teachers Union and two Lane Tech Seniors spoke about the removal of Persepolis from classrooms in Chicago Public Schools. You can watch the interview here, but this particular moment stood out as a perfect response to anyone who might hem and haw about the inappropriateness of this text:
Carol Marin: “But at the same time, if we’re talking the difference between a senior and a 7th grader, there are discriminations to be made, and books are vetted based on age-appropriateness, correct?”
Khristine Mail: “Sure, but take a look at this city. We had over 500 murders last year. Our students are exposed to real violence on a daily basis. This is a cartoon picture from a historical event from 40 years ago. Our kids can handle it.”
We shared a similar sentiment in our letter, sent from our Kids’ Right to Read Project on Friday afternoon.