Search

Representations of black people as animals is both a past and present manifestation of the United States’ complicated history with race.

Kawania Wooten’s voice tightens when she describes the struggle she’s having at the school her son attends. When his class created a timeline of civilization, Wooten saw the Greeks, the Romans and the Incas. But nothing was said about Africa, even though the class has several African American students.

Gender, sexuality and religion are common themes in challenged books of 2015. Rather than effectively ban these topics from the classroom, TT recommends teaching about them and offers student texts to do so.

Learn how to combat censorship and book banning in your school or community with these actions from the American Library Association, National Council of Teachers of English and People for the American Way.