How to “read All Over America” Without Dr. Seuss
This is Reading Day across America , which means millions of schoolchildren across the country will be celebrating today (or even all week) with Dr. Seuss-themed events. The day, established by the National Education Association in 1998 to coincide with Dr. Seuss’s birthday, no longer has an official relationship with the famous author of children’s books, but schools still associate the holiday with an author who used racist imagery in his writings. some of his classics.
Parents and educators are increasingly aware and talking about racist portrayals of certain characters in famous children’s books by Theodore Seuss Geisel, as well as in political cartoons, comics and advertisements that he illustrated, as detailed in a 2019 study. A study of diversity in youth literature . As Tiara Jenkins and Jessica Yarmoski wrote for NPR at the time:
Some of Seuss’ classics have been criticized for their portrayal of people of color. In And Think I Saw It On Mulberry Street, for example, a character described as Chinese has two eye lines, holds chopsticks and a bowl of rice, and wears traditional Japanese-style shoes. In If I Escaped to the Zoo, two men, presumably from Africa, are shown without shirts, shoes and grass skirts, carrying an exotic animal. In addition to his books, the author’s personal legacy was also questioned – Seuss wrote an entire minstrel show in college and acted as the main character in a full black face.
In 2017, NEA ended its partnership with Dr. Seuss Enterprises. Since then, some school districts (most recently Loudon County Public Schools in Virginia ) have followed the association’s lead, announcing that their celebrations will reduce the focus on Seuss in favor of more inclusive and diverse books.
For its part, Dr. Seuss Enterprises announced today that it will no longer publish six of the author’s books in which “people are portrayed in hurtful and wrong ways,” as reported by CNN . The books are: “And to think that I saw it on Mulberry Street”, “If I ran the zoo”, “Poole Makelligota”, “Beyond Zebra,” “super eggs” and “Cat’s Quiz”.
Here’s what NEA says on its website about the current focus of Read Across America :
There is a growing demand in schools and libraries for the distribution and promotion of a variety of books. Students need books that have both windows and mirrors if we’re going to create more readers, writers and people who feel involved and recognized, and who understand that the world is much richer than just their experiences. The NEA recognizes the need to work with a wider variety of organizations and publishers to meet this need, and the Read Across America brand is now independent of any particular book, publisher, or character.
The need to continue reading problem books with our children should be pointed out, namely, this is an opportunity to point out abusive images or phrases as part of longer conversations with our children about racism or sexism . But that doesn’t mean that we should actively honor one particular author every year, ignoring the racist parts of his work, simply because we love the way he rhymes and our children look cute in tall red and white striped hats.
The day can – should – focus on encouraging children to read more by telling stories that they see themselves reflected and that enable them to see the experiences of others. There are many ways to do this so that no one changes clothes like Item 1 and Item 2. Here are some alternatives:
- Take them to the library on a scavenger hunt – invite them to find books that are “mirrors” and books that are “windows.”
- Invite your child’s class to do a “ book tasting ” where each child brings a few of their favorite books to share with the class.
- Ask the family to read at home. Set up cozy reading spaces with blankets, pillows, stuffed animals and stacks of books. Set a timer and see who reads the longest.
- Suggest becoming a guest reader or mystery reader for your child’s virtual lesson.
- Check out this list of books with a variety of characters and storylines, written by the authors of Color.
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