Dr Seuss books to stop publishing

mellowyellow

mellowyellow

Well-known Member
dr seuss1.jpg
Dr. Seuss Enterprises said it made the decision after taking feedback from audiences.
AP: Steven Senne

Six Dr Seuss books including And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street and If I Ran the Zoo will stop being published because of racist and insensitive imagery. There has been increasing criticism in recent years over the depiction of black and Asian people. "Dr Seuss Enterprises listened and took feedback from our audiences including teachers, academics and specialists in the field as part of our review process," it said. "We then worked with a panel of experts, including educators, to review our catalogue of titles."
 

mellowyellow said:
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Dr. Seuss Enterprises said it made the decision after taking feedback from audiences.
AP: Steven Senne

Six Dr Seuss books including And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street and If I Ran the Zoo will stop being published because of racist and insensitive imagery. There has been increasing criticism in recent years over the depiction of black and Asian people. "Dr Seuss Enterprises listened and took feedback from our audiences including teachers, academics and specialists in the field as part of our review process," it said. "We then worked with a panel of experts, including educators, to review our catalogue of titles."
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Darn shame IMO
 
I remember seeing racism in some of his adult cartoon illustrations but I had to re-examine the books they’re removing from publication to understand where the imagery in question was. I read a lot of Dr. Seuss when I was little but the books they are removing were not among my favorites, in fact a few of them I had never even read.
His best books are still in publication and he has quite a catalog so I doubt they will be missed by any but collectors.
I suppose the books they will no longer publish will become collector’s items.
 

chic said:
It's a shame. How can people ever learn from the mistakes of the past and improve themselves if we continually erase that past because it may offend somebody.
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The somebodies being offended are very, very young children who don't need subconscious racial images in their little developing brains. They of course don't know they're being offended against, but a black character from Africa wearing a grass skirt is not a good image to leave rotting in a young kid's head.

Explaining why something is wrong, or offensive, or stereotypical of a certain era is for older kids than the audience that usually sees them.
 
chic said:
It's a shame. How can people ever learn from the mistakes of the past and improve themselves if we continually erase that past because it may offend somebody.
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I don’t see it as erasing the past. Once upon a time postcards like these were commonplace.
Racist Postcards
Eventually people realized how awful they were and they simply stopped making them. But the history that they existed is still easy to find, explore and learn from. It will be the same with these books. They simply won’t publish them any more. But it’s not as if the ones that were already published won’t exist. People will still own, collect and archive the existing books. And Seuss still has many childrens’ books in publication that don’t have racist elements. Not only that but think of all the childrens’ books over the years that never got republished because they were dated and better things had been written since. Nobody is speaking up about the history that is being lost because Dick and Jane books are no longer published.
I think that lamenting the removal of racist things for the sake of “learning from our mistakes” is a misplaced sentiment. That’s what history is for. Nothing is being erased, we are actually living the lesson of learning from our mistakes when we place these things in their proper context and remove them from our daily experience where it has the subtle effect of normalizing racist attitudes.
 
The more attention drawn to this situation the worse racism becomes. From childhood on, I never even thought of race. People were just people. Then when I was stationed down south, what an eye opener that was. Being a Yankee, who knew there were rules everywhere you turned? I was thrown out of a department store in Montgomery, Alabama because I drank from the wrong water fountain back in 1954. Good grief, I was hot and thirsty. I wish folks would get over this nonsense. Did not the Civil Rights Movement mean anything at all?
 
I have looked on the internet ('though I have not yet tried to download the books in question), however I have yet to see any quotes or reproductions of the so called "offensive" pictures or phrases...
Are we all just expected to take their word for it, or anything? (...not that they, mainstream media and cancel culture advocates, have any credibility, IMO).
I will treat this as OPINION (fake) news/propaganda, until I see FACTS/excerpts.

Sgt. Joe Friday was correct: "Just the facts, Mam".

"Question everything!... especially so called authorities." ... From my rebellious phase, growing up.

Enjoy!
 
I gather that the offensive material is the art work, not the rhymes themselves. So, would it be a legal violation to republish the books with non-offensive art work replacing the original? After all, they remake old movies.
 
We don't want children at an important age of learning to learn from a book written for their age group that racism/bigotry is acceptable in any form. This is a country where the majority of Americans want equality for every American. And treating some less than others, even in a children's book, isn't fair to the children reading them. Whether they are in the group that is being demeaned or not. It's just not a lesson we want our children to learn.

It's not about erasing the past. It's about teaching good values that will help our country move forward for equality and diversity.
 
Have seen or read almost every Dr. Seuss book out there .... They encourage reading for younger children.
Studying the pictures for flaws in drawing of characters is what parents must do, not the kids.
Someone is missing the point.
Aren't ALL characters in Dr. Seuss books made to look strange so they can follow the theme of the funny stories?
 
I just examined "If I ran the Zoo" and found only 2 artworks (and I was looking pretty hard) that might, possibly, be considered offensive by a few (they would, likely, have been considered humourous when the book was first published)..
https://archive.org/details/ifiranzoo0000seus_x9d1
Cancelling the book is the wrong thing to do, IMO, making a few minor changes in the artwork would be a better editorial decision. (make the black stereo types (one illustration found) white and make the slanted eyes round (one illustration found)).
I say let the parents decide if they want children to have access to this book; as is...and let them decide whether or not to purchase it.
What children have access to is the responsibility of their parents, IMO... not some third party group that has no public responsibility or accountability.

IMO; This is a prime example of a few people going overboard on PC power trips ... nothing really important here.

Just remember Mickey Mouse is black, So is Minnie... no need to correct him/her.

Enjoy!
 
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Happy Joe said:
Just remember Mickey Mouse is black, So is Minnie... no need to correct him/her.

Enjoy!
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Oh, just wait .... there are people who will find plenty wrong with them.. it's pathetic
iu
 
Hitler, Mao and Stalin operated under the same principal. Burn all old television programs that did not include minorities. Burn all novels that did not include minorities. Strip all citizens of the diplomas earned if they attended schools that were all white. DO NOT ban rap music that includes words of murder, rape and drugs.
 
Bonnie said:
Aren't ALL characters in Dr. Seuss books made to look strange so they can follow the theme of the funny stories?
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As I understand it, the Seuss publishing company decided it pull the books. What’s it doing for the demand for their books?
 
When I read the books to my kids we considered them cartoon type books and did not take them seriously. I see no reason for me to change my mind about them. Never thought about race or anything else. They were just entertainment and were forgotten about until they were read again at bedtime. We read their favorites, said their prayers and said good night. To the kids they were just colorful stick figures. Never gave them a second thought.
 
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