Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” is scheduled for review by a Columbia County School District appeal committee to determine whether to remove or restrict its use in county schools.
“It has not been banned,” said Associate Superintendent Michele Sherman about the 1960 classic.
According to Sherman, a parent submitted an appeal regarding the novel, citing concerns regarding the “racial theme of the book and some of the related language.”
The school board recently revised Procedure IFAA, the process by which learning resources are selected and appealed. The procedure allows for concerned parents and residents in the county to appeal, or challenge, any materials used in schools. In such cases, the district establishes a committee to review the material, hear from the aggrieved parents, deliberate and ultimately vote on whether to take action, and what action to take, whether it’s restricting the book in question by age group or removing it from schools altogether.
“We will spend some time reviewing books and ensuring that they meet this new criteria,” said Sherman. “We have had some parents suggest some titles that we might want to take a look at and we are doing that; that process will be ongoing for a while until we can make sure that that our media centers are as they should be.”
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According to the procedure, the appeal committee is to be comprised of two principals and four teachers representing the grade level from which the complaint originated; four parents who are not employed by the district, to represent a cross-section of school zones; the director of student learning and the associate superintendent of student learning.
“Part of our requirements to serve on the committee is you have to agree to read the book in its entirety,” said Sherman. “And they’re in the process of doing that.”
The appeal comes amid rising and persistent controversy regarding the use of certain literature in Columbia County school curricula, or its availability in school libraries. During the public participation portion of the school board’s regular meeting on Feb. 8, Janet Duggan spoke regarding “sexually explicit content” in Columbia County Schools, saying that the updated Procedure IFAA “does not address the obscene content currently in the schools.”
Duggan went on to read aloud an excerpt from Toni Morrison’s 1970 novel “The Bluest Eye” depicting a sexual assault. She also made mention of when Katie Allen read from “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher during the Aug. 10, 2021 meeting.
“This is repulsive,” said Duggan. “It appeals to impure yet shameful and morbid interest.”
During the same Feb. 8 meeting, Priscilla Bence spoke before the board regarding the Resolution to Re-Focus on Academic Education in Columbia County, Ga. Schools, a petition written by Allen. The petition urges, among other things, that the board “extend the application of Georgia obscenity laws regarding minors” to include all content in schools, including media centers, and to “formally endorse the Georgia State Board of Education Resolution denouncing Critical Race Theory concepts in education.”
That “To Kill A Mockingbird” could even potentially be removed from county schools has prompted objection from other concerned Columbia County parents. Lori Van Lenten, a former music teacher at Greenbrier High School, who currently has three children in the Columbia County school system, remembers when “Dear Martin,” a 2017 novel by Nic Stone, was removed in 2019 by former superintendent Sandra Carraway.
“I had a huge problem with people pulling that book and claiming it was language,” said Van Lenten. “I heard worse language from kids within the first hour of school. Now we’ve spun it to ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.”
Van Lenten says that she reintroduced her middle school aged son to the novel and believes it is important as a piece of quality literature as well as a means for students to explore issues of race and help understand the historical and contemporary struggles of people of color.
“The fact that is was pulled for review is quite a problem,” said Van Lenten. “We should be arguing for the arts, for equal protection and equal understanding for people of color and LGBTQ students. Everything seems to be more and more marginalized.”
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Krys Bailey, house manager of the Le Chat Noir theater in downtown Augusta, said that the theater will add the stage adaptation of “To Kill A Mockingbird” to its season, allowing students to see it for free, if the book is removed.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t have considered it otherwise,” said Bailey, who says he prefers to produce more contemporary works for shows. “But if the rights are available, and Columbia County does indeed permanently remove the book, that is exactly what Le Chat will be doing.”
Sherman says no other book has been formally challenged besides “To Kill A Mockingbird,” and that only one teacher had been using the book in the classroom before the appeal was filed. The committee is scheduled to meet and deliberate on the book on Tuesday, Feb. 22.
“The parent who challenged the book herself will come and present her concerns to the committee as well,” said Sherman. “We really try and make it a fair process for both parent and the resource, to make sure that we make a good decision.”
The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom compiles an annual list of the most banned and challenged books. Its top 10 list from 2020 included both “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “The Bluest Eye.”
“To Kill A Mockingbird” is frequently on the list because of its use of “racial slurs and their negative effect on students, featuring a ‘white savior’ character, and its perception of the Black experience,” according to the association’s website. “The Bluest Eye” made the list because “it was considered sexually explicit and depicts child sexual abuse.”
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering education in Columbia County and business-related topics for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
