CPS Persepolis protest meme via Fred Klonsky
Even though Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett says CPS is not “banning” the graphic novel “Persepolis” from all schools, critics are not happy with the district’s pulling the book from selected classrooms.
Byrd-Bennett sent a letter to CPS principals after confusion spread regarding an unexplained directive. The notice ordered CPS leaders to remove copies of the book from libraries and classrooms. The original directive was passed to high schools principals, but Byrd-Bennett’s response letter contradicted the initial memo, claiming the ban was only meant for seventh grade classrooms, not all libraries and schools.
“First, let me be clear – we are not banning this book from our schools,” Byrd-Bennett said in the letter. “It was brought to our attention that it contains graphic language and images that are not appropriate for general use in the seventh grade curriculum. If your seventh grade teachers have not yet taught this book, please ask them not to do so and to remove any copies of the book from their classrooms.”
But critics like the Chicago-based American Library Association and the Chicago Teachers Union aren’t satisfied with the explanation, and Lane Tech College Prep students carried on with scheduled protests against the “ban.”
