Bill Text: NJ ACR225 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Encourages school districts to remove "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from school curriculum.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-25 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Education Committee [ACR225 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2018-ACR225-Introduced.html
ASSEMBLY CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 225
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
218th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED MARCH 25, 2019
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
Assemblyman JAMEL C. HOLLEY
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Encourages school districts to remove "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from school curriculum.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Concurrent Resolution encouraging school districts to remove the book "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the school curriculum.
Whereas, The famous novel "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," written by Mark Twain in 1884, consistently appears on the American Library Association's list of the most challenged and banned books; and
Whereas, The novel tells the coming-of-age story of a boy named Huck who escapes from his violent father and meets a runaway slave named Jim; and
Whereas, The story's narrative, and the language used, reflect the prejudices and racial tensions of the Deep South at the time in which the novel was written; and
Whereas, "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" was written at a time when cruel and unjust treatment of African Americans was commonplace in certain areas of the country; and
Whereas, In addition to depicting deeply ingrained racial attitudes of the time, the book liberally uses a highly offensive racial slur more than 200 times throughout its pages; and
Whereas, The novel's use of a racial slur and its depiction of racist attitudes can cause students to feel upset, marginalized, or humiliated and can create an uncomfortable atmosphere in the classroom; and
Whereas, Controversy surrounding the inclusion of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" as required reading for students has led several school districts around the country to remove the book from the curriculum, including school districts in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Minnesota, and Mississippi; and
Whereas, For example, in December 2015, Friends' Central School in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, removed "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the curriculum and replaced it with "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass," after reaching a determination that the community costs of reading the book in 11th grade outweighed the literary benefits; and
Whereas, In 2018, the Duluth School District in Minnesota removed "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from its list of required reading because of the novel's frequent use of a racial slur; and
Whereas, The inclusion of "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" in the school curriculum in effect requires adolescents to read and discuss a book containing hurtful, oppressive, and highly offensive language directed toward African Americans; and
Whereas, The list of required reading in schools should be inclusive and considerate of all students, without content likely to cause students to feel uncomfortable and marginalized; and
Whereas, School districts in New Jersey should be encouraged to eliminate the book "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the school curriculum and to instead select literature that teaches similar topics without subjecting students to racial slurs and other content which is offensive and hurtful, particularly to African American students; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey (the Senate concurring):
1. The Legislature encourages school districts to remove the novel "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the school curriculum, and instead to select literature that does not contain racial slurs and other highly offensive language which may cause students to feel uncomfortable and marginalized.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly to the Commissioner of Education and to the State Board of Education to be distributed to each board of education in the State.
STATEMENT
This concurrent resolution encourages school districts in New Jersey to remove the novel "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" from the school curriculum. The book, written in 1884, reflects prejudices and racial tensions of the Deep South at a time when cruel and unjust treatment of African Americans was commonplace in certain areas of the country. The book liberally uses a highly offensive racial slur and depicts racist attitudes which can cause students to feel upset, marginalized, or humiliated and can create an uncomfortable atmosphere in the classroom. The list of required reading in schools should be inclusive and considerate of all students. School districts should be encouraged to remove "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" as required reading and to instead select literature that does not contain racial slurs and other highly offensive language which may cause students to feel uncomfortable and marginalized.
