Anne Frank Diary 'Pornographic,' Claims Mom...

[Tennesseer]

... Demands School Drop Book From Curriculum

The Anne Frank Diary is 'pornographic' according to one mother who has lodged a formal complaint over the book being used in school to educate her own child.

Mom, Gail Horalek, has filed a formal complaint against her daughter's school district over its use of the Anne Frank Diary, saying that many of the passages contained in the book are way to graphic for seventh graders like her daughter.

The mother highlights one part of the book in which Frank discusses discovering her genitalia, and Horalek has said it is akin to pornography, and is completely inappropriate for her child and her schoolmates.

She has complained that Meads Mill Middle School should have asked parents to sign a permission slip before they assigned the book to the children to read, due to the content.

She has said, "The problem is the school is giving the seventh graders inappropriate material and not explaining it to the parents," according to the Northville Patch.

Horalek has explained that the school has sent permission slips home for parents to sign when they have looked to use various other books and films that may contain strong material that some could deem "inappropriate."

The mother said, "If they watch any kind of movie with a swear word in it, I have to sign a permission slip."

Other parents she has spoken to were unaware of the content in some of the passages, she claims. The mother admits that she only found out herself about the passages when her daughter came to her saying that she felt uncomfortable about the content of the book she was reading for school.

Horalek has now demanded that the book be removed from the curriculum: "It doesn't mean my child is sheltered, it doesn't mean I live in a bubble and it doesn't mean I'm trying to ban books."

The Anne Frank Diary in fact comes in different versions, with an uncensored version and a full version. Horalek's school district used the uncensored version.

In another incident in 2010, Culpeper County public school in Virginia stopped assigning the uncensored version due to some of the content in the full version of the diary.

m.christianpost.com/news/anne-frank-diary-pornographic-claims-mom-demands-school-drop-book-from-curriculum-video--94843/

Does one section of the book cancel out the good of the rest of the book? If assigning the book, should the school warn students and parents pages such-and-such should be passed by if mature subject matter may make the child (or parent) uncomfortable?

Thoughts?

[whoisjohngalt]

Oh lord let me not comment as I don't want to be banned......

[Tennesseer]

If your comment would be about the story content, nothing you say would get you banned.

[marvholly]

7th grader having 'issues' w/the content??
i suspect she know/understands a GREAT deal more then her mother is giving her credit for.  At/before that age I was reading Pearl S. Buck and her works were, in MANY cases, far more graphic.  Had to get a note from a parent to take them out of the public library since they were in the adult section & I had a children;s card until I hit 14. 

[cereb]

Well, this should be fun once they get to "Catcher in the Rye"...

[Deleted]

I will concede the point that The Diary of Anne Frank is a bit racier today than back when most of us read it.  It wasn't until the past 20 years or so that they added back the parts her Dad had withheld from the original publication.


That said, it was written by a 13 year old, which would imply that it is appropriate content for other 13 year olds.  The power in her story is its ordinariness.  Faced with completely extraordinary circumstances, Anne still had completely ordinary hormones and feelings and petty jealousies and all the rest.  If she wasn't so relatable, people would have stopped reading her words.

In typical American fashion, we are fixated on sex and oblivious to violence.  The most disturbing part of my copy was the afterword describing Anne's life after their arrest.

[TonyTiger]

It doesn't matter one little bit, what we think is 'appropriate' or 'inappropriate' for that woman's child.

It doesn't matter one little bit, what the school district thinks is 'appropriate' or 'inappropriate' for that woman's child.

All that matters is what the mother of that child thinks.

A somewhat reasonable case can be made on behalf of the mother's position in the matter.

Although I do confess wondering how they might undertake Sex Education at that grade-level without exposure to such verbiage.

I don't think I have all the salient facts on-hand to be able to render an opinion-based judgment.

Failing that, my inclination is to land on the side of the parent(s), whenever practicable and at least somewhat reasonable.

In the interim, anyhoooo... 

[Deleted]

Anne describes her genitalia.  It's no more pornographic than an anatomy textbook.

[billisonboard]

She has complained that Meads Mill Middle School should have asked parents to sign a permission slip before they assigned the book to the children to read, due to the content.
...
Horalek has explained that the school has sent permission slips home for parents to sign when they have looked to use various other books and films that may contain strong material that some could deem "inappropriate."
...
Horalek has now demanded that the book be removed from the curriculum: "It doesn't mean my child is sheltered, it doesn't mean I live in a bubble and it doesn't mean I'm trying to ban books." (from the OP)

If it is the policy of the school to send permission slips home, it seems easy enough to add this book to the list of books that slips are sent home when it is assigned. Give the censored version to any kid who has parents who object to the full version.

[Deleted]

I think the problem is that if the kids read 2 different copies of the book, the teacher can't say "open to page 47 and read the second paragraph."

You wind up with every kid getting the censored version.

[billisonboard]

Apr 28, 2013 8:49:34 GMT -5 @craftysarah said:

I think the problem is that if the kids read 2 different copies of the book, the teacher can't say "open to page 47 and read the second paragraph."

You wind up with every kid getting the censored version.

A teacher could cope.

[Deleted]

I remember when we read of mice and men, kids/ parents could choose to read the red pony instead. Thy had a packet of worksheets, assignments. etc. I think they missed classroom discussion, etc. 

[djAdvocate]

Apr 28, 2013 7:55:57 GMT -5 @craftysarah said:

I will concede the point that The Diary of Anne Frank is a bit racier today than back when most of us read it.  It wasn't until the past 20 years or so that they added back the parts her Dad had withheld from the original publication.


That said, it was written by a 13 year old, which would imply that it is appropriate content for other 13 year olds.  The power in her story is its ordinariness.  Faced with completely extraordinary circumstances, Anne still had completely ordinary hormones and feelings and petty jealousies and all the rest.  If she wasn't so relatable, people would have stopped reading her words.

In typical American fashion, we are fixated on sex and oblivious to violence.  The most disturbing part of my copy was the afterword describing Anne's life after their arrest.

agree with sarah 100%.  if a story written by a 13YO about her life is not appropriate for 13YO's, then what IS appropriate?

[TonyTiger]

'Appropriate' - for a child - should be left up to the parents of the child - not you, nor I, nor the local townie school-board - at least within reason.

And, frankly, that's the crux - what is considered 'reasonable' - and reasonable people have differences of opinion regarding what may be considered 'reasonable' in this context.

Under circumstances wherein a piece of literature or a particular lesson ranges beyond the Moral Comfort Zone of the parents of the child - and under circumstances wherein that Moral Comfort Zone has defensible parameters - the school board should be bending over backwards to ensure that no child is obliged to take-in material that violates the parents' sense of morality or sensibilities.

It's called protecting the innocent - to an extent and for a duration best decided by the parents of the child.

It would have been appropriate (and smart) for that townie school board to have notified parents in advance that somewhat 'racy' material was going to be employed in the near future, and, at least, give the parents time to 'opt out' of that material in favor of something else.

This is all about such a process falling through the cracks, and others trying to impose their standards of appropriateness upon the parents and the child.

I come down squarely on the side of the parent(s) in this case.

I would not be insisting that the material be removed from the curriculum.

But I would be insisting that parents be notified in advance of any such usage and I would be insisting that provision be made for opt-out and substitution.

It would be the 'decent' thing to do.

[Deleted]

It doesn't matter one little bit, what we think is 'appropriate' or 'inappropriate' for that woman's child.

It doesn't matter one little bit, what the school district thinks is 'appropriate' or 'inappropriate' for that woman's child.

All that matters is what the mother of that child thinks.

No, that defeats the purpose and cost savings of public education. It is a case of majority rules through the decisions of their elected representatives. It is not feasible to customize the school curriculum to every student and their family's sense of morality. If a parent believes the public system is that "inappropriate" they can opt to go to a private school that agrees with them or home school. It matters very much what the school district thinks is appropriate for children that age to be reading.

[billisonboard]

I think that the discussion of why some are reading one edition and others a different one is a great teaching moment, particularly with the backdrop being the Holocaust.

[Deleted]

This may shock Mrs. Horalek but most seventh graders have discovered their own genitalia.  Several people I knew at that age had discovered the genitalia of the opposite sex.  Crazy stuff.

Horalek has now demanded that the book be removed from the curriculum: "It doesn't mean my child is sheltered, it doesn't mean I live in a bubble and it doesn't mean I'm trying to ban books."

That's exactly what it means.

[Peace Of Mind]

anne beat me to it.  If they are just now finding out about their own bodies their parents have much bigger issues to contend with than what Anne Frank said at that age or having books banned.    Didn't the same thing happen with The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn I and To Kill a Mockingbird?   What is wrong with some parents today?  What are they so afraid of?  I would hate that my kid was so clueless, naïve, and in the dark that they are a social misfit or get knocked up or STDs because they lack education for basic things like that.  So many kids can't even think for themselves because of parents like this lady who go too far in protecting their kids.  It makes me sad for the kids who will have to learn everything the hard way. 

[Deleted]

I feel sorry for her daughter too.  I think it's great that she spoke to her mother about a sexual topic that made her uncomfortable but it seems like the way the mom handled it will shut down future conversations. 

One of the things I love about this book was that Anne was very human and complex.  She argued with her family and was interested in boys and probably kind of a brat at times.  If you start taking away all the parts that made her three dimensional then you are turning her into something that kids can't relate to, which completely voids the point of trying to have kids understand what the Holocaust meant on a human level.

[Deleted]

I think every book we read in school that was any good was banned at some point or another.  Why didn't anyone ever think to ban Great Expectations?  Because it sucked.

[djAdvocate]

Apr 28, 2013 13:02:46 GMT -5 TonyTiger said:

'Appropriate' - for a child - should be left up to the parents of the child - not you, nor I, nor the local townie school-board - at least within reason..

not questioning that.  i asked a simple question OF PARENTS. 

[djAdvocate]

Apr 28, 2013 16:06:30 GMT -5 @craftysarah said:

I think every book we read in school that was any good was banned at some point or another.  Why didn't anyone ever think to ban Great Expectations?  Because it sucked.

i just heard a great Utah Phillips quote.  if voting was dangerous, it would be made illegal.  i am paraphrasing.

that is precisely what is going on here, imo.  it is more about control than about message.

[thyme4change]

The mother admits that she only found out herself about the passages when her daughter came to her saying that she felt uncomfortable about the content of the book she was reading for school.

What a great opportunity to talk about all sorts of things...like the value of learning about things, even if we are uncomfortable, or an opening for the sex talk, or asking what other subjects might make her uncomfortable, or even talking about the rest of the book.  Nope - much better off to burn the school down.

[Tennesseer]

Apr 28, 2013 20:19:02 GMT -5 thyme4change said:

The mother admits that she only found out herself about the passages when her daughter came to her saying that she felt uncomfortable about the content of the book she was reading for school.

What a great opportunity to talk about all sorts of things...like the value of learning about things, even if we are uncomfortable, or an opening for the sex talk, or asking what other subjects might make her uncomfortable, or even talking about the rest of the book.  Nope - much better off to burn the school down.

I wonder if the mother would be troubled with her daughter learning the far more graphic horrors of the death camps in which Anne died.

[billisonboard]

Number of murders seen on TV by the time an average child finishes elementary school: 8,000
Number of violent acts seen on TV by age 18: 200,000
www.csun.edu/science/health/docs/tv&health.html

Gentalia, not so many. That would be wrong.

[EVT1]

Apr 28, 2013 20:45:42 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Number of murders seen on TV by the time an average child finishes elementary school: 8,000
Number of violent acts seen on TV by age 18: 200,000
www.csun.edu/science/health/docs/tv&health.html

Gentalia, not so many. That would be wrong.

No doubt- homicide is fine, sex is offensive. 

Damn teenagers need to quit thinking about or reading about sex and learn how to shoot a gun!

Have to disagree with the absolute rights of parents-they are not.  You do not have the right to let your child die because you want to pray them better, you do not have the right to let your child be raised without any education, etc.  Is it ok to raise a child as a white supremacist, or a terrorist?  Only one way to keep shitty parents from turning their kids into mindless idiots- education.  So sorry book burners the needs of society outweigh your rights to raise a mouthbreather.

[Deleted]

I wonder how many 7th graders are suddenly doing their reading assignments looking for the pornography?

[EVT1]

Probably none- 7th graders already know and have seen a lot more.  I saw playboy pictures in 2nd grade- now we have the internet.   And I had to settle for wrinkled pages out of a trash can.

This woman is a loon.  Go ahead- sell your offspring on some fantasy world and set them up for failure when reality hits.  Sex=bad training- what could possibly go wrong there.  Ever wonder why the preacher's daughter is always a freak or winds up on the pole?

[billisonboard]

Apr 28, 2013 21:47:54 GMT -5 @justaposter said:

I wonder how many 7th graders are suddenly doing their reading assignments looking for the pornography?

The things that Anne was really frank about

Her frank remarks about her body were also seen as too shocking. "Until I was 11 or 12, I didn't realise there was a second set of labia on the inside [of the vagina], though you couldn't see them. What's even funnier is that I thought urine came out of the clitoris. I asked Mother one time what that little bump was, and she said she didn't know. She can really play dumb when she wants to!"

Think that they will be disappointed.

[djAdvocate]

yeah, heaven forbid that we should refer to a women's sexual apparatus.  oh, the humanity!