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ACCOMACK Co., Va. – Classic novels “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” and “To Kill a Mockingbird” are no longer temporarily bannedfrom Accomack County schools.
Use of the two classics was suspended after a parent raised concerns about their use of the N-word.
“There’s so much racial slurs and defensive wording in there that you can’t get past that,” the mother said during last month’s school board meeting. “Right now, we are a nation divided as it is.”
Accomack County Schools confirmed in a release that the novels will immediately return to library shelves in the schools.
The Accomack County School Board voted unanimously to permanently reinstate the books during their meeting on Tuesday.
The Accomack County School Board also said that they plan to create a new committee which will review the board’s policy.
(Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images)
“These novels are treasures of American literature and inspirational, timeless stories of conscience and bravery,” said Dr. Ronnie E. Holden, chairman of the Accomack County School Board. “We agree that some of the language used is offensive and hurtful. Fortunately, Accomack County’s excellent teachers and media center specialists have a wonderful talent for conveying the bigger meanings and messages of literature, including these two seminal works.”
Accomack County Schools says the parent who originally made the formal complaint about the books, did not ask that the books be banned, just that a larger selection of diverse reading materials be included in the curricula.
“The superintendent simply followed the existing policy when the materials were removed,” said Holden.
