Oct 6 (Reuters) - A Texas school district has removed two books by Jerry Craft from its libraries and postponed his virtual appearance before students after parents complained his graphic novels teach critical race theory, possibly in violation of a new state law.
The Katy Independent School District near Houston has stoked the latest controversy over critical race theory, a once-obscure academic concept. White conservatives have rallied to ban it in schools, arguing that it overstates America's racist history.
The theory, which examines how American institutions might be inherently racist, is mostly taught in law school.
Local television station KPRC first reported the ban on the book. Craft on Wednesday said the petition to ban his books also resulted in the postponement his appearance before students.
A Texas law that took effect on Sept. 1 restricts discussions of race and history in schools. Republican Governor Greg Abbott said the law was a "strong move to abolish critical race theory."
Craft's "New Kid" and its sequel "Class Act" tell the stories of minority students who enroll in a predominantly white private school. His work has won the Newbery Medal, the Coretta Scott King Author Award and the Kirkus Prize, according to his website.
The Katy schools, which according to the district website serve almost 89,000 students, "temporarily" removed the books from the libraries, KPRC said, citing a district spokesperson. NBC, citing a district representative, said Craft's appearance set for Monday was postponed.
Reuters could not reach Katy school officials late Wednesday.
Bonnie Anderson, one of the parents who objected to the books, told KPRC, "It is inappropriate instructional material.
"The books don't come out and say, 'We want white children to feel like oppressors,' but that is absolutely what they will do," Anderson said.
Craft, who is African American, said his books were aimed at "showing kids of color as just regular kids."
"I almost never saw kids like me in any of the books assigned to me in school. Books aimed at kids like me seemed to deal only with history or misery," Craft said, adding that he also tries to include messages of "strong values, loving families, very supportive friends, and plenty of humor."
Reporting by Daniel Trotta; Editing by Leslie Adler
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
jschubart on October 7th, 2021 at 17:52 UTC »
Apparently anything that is not blatantly white is now CRT to Texas conservatives. I swear these dummies all ate paint chips as kids.
dhork on October 7th, 2021 at 13:02 UTC »
I hadn't heard of this author or this book before, so I looked up some info about it:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Kid
And it seems like it's a semi-autobiographical graphic novel. So it's particularly ironic that these people are condemning the book for pushing what they see as a manufactured political agenda, when it seems the author based it on some of his own experiences.
I guess, to the protestors, the author's lived experiences aren't valid.
anon_tonya on October 7th, 2021 at 13:01 UTC »
For those curious, it was 2 books by Jerry Craft.
"Craft's "New Kid" and its sequel "Class Act" tell the stories of minority students who enroll in a predominantly white private school. His work has won the Newbery Medal, the Coretta Scott King Author Award and the Kirkus Prize, according to his website."