--- description: A Minnesota school district is removing To Kill a Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn from its required reading list. title: U.S. School District Removes Books Over Racial Slurs image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc65ea2338fa4029/6988fb09ab6d7700a46b1a64/kill-a-mockingbird-huck-finn-reading-list.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Education](/tag/education/) ## Education Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # A School District Has Dropped _Mockingbird_ and _Huckleberry Finn_ From Reading Lists Over Racial Slurs  by [Katie Reilly](/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 8, 2018 1:21 AM CUT  A new printing of the book 'To Kill a Mockingbird,' by author Harper Lee, is on display at Faulkner House Books in New Orleans, Louisiana on May 28, 2015. A new printing of the book 'To Kill a Mockingbird,' by author Harper Lee, is on display at Faulkner House Books in New Orleans, Louisiana on May 28, 2015.Melanie Stetson Freeman—The Christian Science Monitor/Getty Images  by [Katie Reilly](/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Feb 8, 2018 1:21 AM CUT A Minnesota school district is removing _To Kill a Mockingbird_ and _Huckleberry Finn_ from its required reading list because they contain racial slurs. Both books have been staples on school reading lists in the U.S. for decades, but school leaders in Duluth, Minn., said the use of racial slurs in both books has made many students uncomfortable. While the books will still be available in Duluth schools as an option for students to read individually, they won’t be required next school year. “We felt that we could still teach the same standards and expectations through other novels that didn’t require students to feel humiliated or marginalized by the use of racial slurs,” Michael Cary, director of curriculum and instruction for the district, [told the Twin Cities _Pioneer Press_](https://www.twincities.com/2018/02/06/duluth-drops-two-american-novels-from-reading-list-citing-use-of-racial-slur/ "undefined"). He said teachers are working on selecting different books for the reading list that will teach similar lessons without using racial slurs. “Conversations about race are an important topic, and we want to make sure we address those conversations in a way that works well for all of our students,” he told the [Minneapolis _Star Tribune_](http://www.startribune.com/duluth-schools-remove-huckleberry-finn-and-to-kill-a-mockingbird-from-curriculum/473208003/ "undefined"). The decision was praised by the local chapter of the NAACP. “Our kids don’t need to read the ‘N’ word in school,” Stephan Witherspoon, president of the Duluth chapter, told the [_Star Tribune_](http://www.startribune.com/duluth-schools-remove-huckleberry-finn-and-to-kill-a-mockingbird-from-curriculum/473208003/ "undefined"). “They deal with that every day out in the community and in their life. Racism still exists in a very big way.” But the choice is likely to spark criticism from others. A school district in Biloxi, Miss., sparked a debate about censorship last year when it [removed _To Kill a Mockingbird_](http://time.com/4983786/biloxi-mississippi-school-ban-to-kill-a-mockingbird/ "undefined") from its reading list over language, drawing criticism from a [former U.S. Education Secretary](https://twitter.com/arneduncan/status/919187348876857349?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref%5Furl=http%3A%2F%2Ftime.com%2F4983786%2Fbiloxi-mississippi-school-ban-to-kill-a-mockingbird%2F "undefined") and at least [one U.S. Senator](https://twitter.com/BenSasse/status/919223024896716800?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref%5Furl=http%3A%2F%2Ftime.com%2F4983786%2Fbiloxi-mississippi-school-ban-to-kill-a-mockingbird%2F "undefined"). Both _To Kill a Mockingbird_ and _Huckleberry Finn_ have been included on the American Library Association’s [list](http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/top-100-bannedchallenged-books-2000-2009 "undefined") of frequently banned or challenged books. Critics have [often cited](http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/classics "undefined") the books’ use of racial epithets as a reason, arguing they could upset black students. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5138752/mockingbird-huckleberry-finn-racial-slurs-racism/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5138752/mockingbird-huckleberry-finn-racial-slurs-racism/"},"headline":"A School District Has Dropped Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn From Reading Lists Over Racial Slurs","datePublished":"2018-02-08T01:21:48.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T19:11:41.350Z","description":"Both texts have been included on the American Library Association's list of frequently banned or challenged books","url":"https://time.com/5138752/mockingbird-huckleberry-finn-racial-slurs-racism/","keywords":["Education","Books","Minnesota","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc65ea2338fa4029/6988fb09ab6d7700a46b1a64/kill-a-mockingbird-huck-finn-reading-list.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Katie Reilly","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc65ea2338fa4029/6988fb09ab6d7700a46b1a64/kill-a-mockingbird-huck-finn-reading-list.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"NOLA independent bookstores are thriving","caption":"NOLA independent bookstores are thriving","creditText":"Melanie Stetson Freeman—The Christian Science Monitor/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/education/","name":"Education"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5138752/mockingbird-huckleberry-finn-racial-slurs-racism/","name":"A School District Has Dropped Mockingbird and Huckleberry Finn From Reading Lists Over Racial Slurs"}}]}] ```