Invisible Man Ban Lifted In North Carolina Schools


The Invisible Man ban was lifted in North Carolina schools yesterday evening, after a six to one vote by the Randolph County School board.

As reported by The Inquisitr, North Carolina was set to reconsider their Invisible Man ban after facing national criticism over the decision to ban the book.

The Invisible Man was written by Ralph Ellison in 1952 to address the widespread racism and alienation of the era. It has been lauded in many spheres as a book that has shaped American culture, but apparently a parent in Randolph County disagreed.

The long and detailed 12 page complaint letter caused the North Carolina school to enact their Invisible Man ban because the book is “not so innocent” and “filthy”. Indeed, many accounts in the book are “not so innocent”, but enlightening about the issues faced by African-Americans in Jim Crow America.

The Invisible Man‘ is number 19 on Modern Library’s list of the 100 greatest novels of the 20th century. The opening of the book includes one touching line which says, “I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me.”

It is unclear why the North Carolina school would enact this Invisible Man ban (or any book ban for that matter) because of a single parent complaint, but initially the school board defended their decision, with one member saying, “I didn’t find any literary value.” Unfortunately for the North Carolina school, the nation disagreed along with many teachers and other parents and let the school board know they wanted the Invisible Man ban lifted.

District English teacher Justine Carter spoke in favor of the ban retraction, arguing that the message of the book still stands today:

Some of the students in our classrooms right now feel that same cloak of invisibility.

It seems that many feel the lessons and insights of the Invisible Man are timeless and should be considered a classic and not a banned book. However, one service rendered by the situation has been to bring the book into the spotlight. The book is in such high demand by area residents that there is now a long waiting list for the book.

Despite the negatives in this case, it appears that school board members have learned something, even if the lesson is not hastily ban a book based on one parent’s opinion. Board member Lambeth said of how the Board handled the entire situation: “We should all be proud. When concerned citizens bring their displeasure at what their government has decided… that is the pinnacle of the democratic process.”

Another School Board member, Gary Cook congratulates himself on finally making the correct decision, telling reporters, “We may have been hammered on this and we may have made a mistake, but at least we’re big enough to admit it.”

Ironically enough, the retraction of the Invisible Man ban came during the American Library Associations’ Banned Books Week, which celebrates the freedom to read. The association was one of many condemning the ban, both locally and country wide.

What do you think about the controversy surrounding the Invisible Man ban?

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