Ala. schools canceled a Black author’s visit. Families rallied around him.

Subject

Hoover City Schools; Derrick Barnes; Censorship

Description

It started as a rumor among the parents. A few days later, Hoover City Schools confirmed the news: It was canceling three book readings by acclaimed children’s author Derrick Barnes at elementary schools in Hoover, Ala., just a few weeks before he was due to visit in early February for Black History Month.

Ashley Dorough was disappointed. Barnes’s children’s books, most of which center on the experience of Black children, were some of her sons’ favorites.

She was also confused. A statement from the school district, where Dorough’s sons are enrolled, first said the visits fell through because of contractual issues. Then the district superintendent told AL.com that a parent had complained to a principal about “controversial ideas” on Barnes’s social media accounts.

When Barnes pulled out of a subsequent reading at the Hoover Public Library, Dorough was dismayed.

Creator

By Daniel Wu

Source

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/02/10/alabama-author-barnes-hoover-school/

Publisher

washingtonpost.com

File