The graphic novel version of “The Diary of Anne Frank.".Photo:STRINGER/AFP via Getty
STRINGER/AFP via Getty
An unidentified Texas teacher has been fired after she read aloud an excerpt from the illustrated version ofAnne Frank’sThe Diary of a Young Girlto her eighth-grade reading class, according to local news outlet KFDM-6.
“The teacher was sent home [Wednesday]. There is an active investigation,” added Canizales. PEOPLE reached out to Canizales for further comment.
Anne Frankwas a Jewish teenager murdered at age 16 inthe Holocaustafter her family hid for two years inside thesecret annex of an Amsterdam house. Her diary, which was retrieved after her death and first published in English in 1952, is regarded as a critical piece of historic literature and is often taught in school when students learn about the Holocaust.
Amy Manuel, whose twin sons are in the eighth-grade reading class in Texas, told KFDM-6 she objected to the book’s content regarding Anne’s attraction toward another girl, saying of the passage in which Anne writes about her fantasies, “that’s not okay.”
Anne Frank.ADN-Bildarchiv/ullstein bild/Getty
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This is not the first time the book has drawn criticism. In April, aFlorida high school removed the bookafter a parent affiliated with the conservative group Moms for Liberty complained. In recent years, conservative groups across the country have moved to ban books to which they object.
In an April statement to theJewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA)about various challenges to the graphic adaptation, the Anne Frank Fonds — the Switzerland-based foundation that controls the copyright to her diary — said it was concerned that ignorance about the Holocaust and “denial of history are on the rise, especially in the United States.”
source: people.com
