Duluth Dumbs Down Its Curriculum

Sad news reported by the Star Tribune: “Duluth schools remove ‘Huckleberry Finn’ and ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ from curriculum.” Why are Duluth’s students no longer going to be assigned the two best-known anti-racism books in American history?

“The feedback that we’ve received is that it makes many students feel uncomfortable,” said Michael Cary, director of curriculum and instruction for the district.

Apparently it was minority students who reported being uncomfortable. The move was hailed by Stephan Witherspoon, president of the Duluth chapter of the NAACP, who said it was “long overdue.”

“Our kids don’t need to read the ‘N’ word in school,” Witherspoon said. “They deal with that every day out in the community and in their life. Racism still exists in a very big way.”

I very much doubt that Duluth school children encounter the “N-word” “every day.” Not unless they are listening to rap, that is.

I don’t know what books Duluth students will read instead of Huckleberry Finn and To Kill a Mockingbird, but they are virtually certain not to be as good. Also, they won’t be as entertaining, as Huckleberry Finn and Mockingbird are two of the most fun books to read ever penned by an American. Or anyone, for that matter. Students will be the losers.

The decline of our public education system continues apace.