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The Patriot Ledger
400 Crown Colony Drive
P.O. Box 699159
Quincy, MA 02269-9159
(617) 786-7000
Schools asked to ban book; Parent of seventh-grader says it promotes hatred toward Arabs
By KAREN GOULART
The Patriot Ledger
DUXBURY - The parent of a Duxbury Middle School student wants a book banned because he believes it teaches hatred toward Arabs.
George Shamma filed a formal complaint about the use of ‘‘One More River'' by Lynne Reid Banks in his daughter's reading class after she came to him upset about passages that use expletives and slurs to describe Arabs. He wants it out of the seventh grade reading curriculum and said he may take legal action if it isn't.
Use of the book is being reviewed, Superintendent of Schools Eileen Williams said. She said the book has been part of the curriculum for three or four years and this is the first complaint.
The Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee has said Arabs in the book are portrays as ‘‘backward ... cowardly, and barbaric.''
‘‘The book, viewed by anybody of an unbiased viewpoint, would deem it to be filth. It's nothing short of that,'' Shamma said. ‘‘It's totally derogatory toward Israeli and Arab people.''
The book is about a privileged teenager whose family moves from Canada to an Israeli kibbutz on the Jordan River. It takes place before, during and after the 1967 Six-Day War.
Shamma, who is of Arab descent, said the book denigrates Arabs and depicts Jews and Israelis as hateful. In his formal complaint, Shamma listed more than a half dozen passages he found objectionable.
He said if the book is not taken out of the curriculum he will sue to have it removed.
‘‘I truly hope it never comes to that,'' Shamma said. ‘‘I don't want to call attention to Duxbury as a place where something like this was a problem.''
This is not the first time the book has been the subject of scrutiny. In 2000 the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee successfully lobbied to have the book removed from the curriculum in Baltimore County, Md., schools.
In Duxbury, students were not assigned to read the entire book by teacher Judy Regan, but were free to do so. Allyson Shamma, 13, read the full text and said it upset her.
‘‘There are a lot of bad things about Arabs in there and how they are mistrusted and they're called by an Israeli swear word,'' Allyson said. ‘‘It made me feel bad. I didn't think kids should be reading it. I didn't think it should be taught in the classroom.''
Shamma said when he filed a formal complaint in October, he was told the lesson involving the book was coming to an end. But it was still being used before the holiday break in December.
Williams said complaints about curriculum are filed with the school's principal and forwarded to Assistant Superintendent Susan Skeiber.
Williams said Duxbury residents who are part of the Muslim and Jewish communities are reviewing the book.
Williams said she doesn't expect a quick decision.
‘‘Obviously, this deals with censorship. That's what the issue is, and it's important that people feel comfortable bringing concerns like this to us that we'll completely examine the claim,'' Williams said.
While the review is under way, the book will continue to be used, but Allyson Shamma will not be required to use it.
She chose not to do a final paper on the book and worked with Duxbury Middle School Principal Joellen Scannell to create an alternative final assignment. She is writing a paper about ‘‘Baghdad Burning,'' a weblog -- that describes a girl's everyday life in that city during the occupation.
Allyson did other assignments related to the book, including making a map of the kibbutz. She said she has read other books by the author and enjoyed them, but ‘‘One More River'' should not be in her school.
‘‘That's what I hope will happen,'' she said.
Williams said reading materials are chosen carefully and often coordinate with what is being studied in other classes. Allyson Shamma said she was learning about the Middle East in social studies class.
Williams, superintendent for 12 years, said she doesn't recall removing any other book from the curriculum, but schools once stopped using an anti-bullying video because of complaints that it was too violent.
Shamma said an attorney at the ACLU suggested he contact the organization, but he has not yet done so.
‘‘Those are resources I hope never have to be tapped,'' Shamma, a former housing authority member and a candidate for selectman last year, said. ‘‘Duxbury is an intelligent town and I think it can be resolved in an intelligent way.''
E-mail Karen Goulart at kgoulart@ledger.com.
Copyright 2005 The Patriot Ledger
Transmitted Tuesday, January 11, 2005
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P.O. Box 699159, Quincy, MA 02269-9159
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