Spokane Most Critical Of School Book Contents Tied For First Among Cities In Number Of “Censorship” Attempts

Some call it censorship. Some call it democracy. Either way, Spokane is at the center of a national debate among parents, school boards and political groups over the content of school books.

Spokane ranks in a tie for first among cities nationwide in the number of “censorship” attempts in its public schools, the Washington, D.C.-based People for the American Way, said this week.

But censorship is a subjective term.

Requests by parents to shelve what they feel are objectionable books are examples of “good civics - it’s democracy,” countered Kristin Hamrick of the Family Research Council.

Last year, according to People for the American Way, there were 338 reported cases of attempted censorship nationwide, plus 120 instances of “broad-based challenges” to public education.

Of those, 20 came from Washington - six from Spokane. That tied Spokane with Bemidji, Minn., a city of about 10,000 people, for the most complaints in the country.

Seattle, by comparison, had only one censorship complaint.

In accumulating the statistics, the organization mainly depends on the willingness of school districts to report book controversies.

The annual censorship study is based on 75,000 surveys mailed to teachers and educators, plus newspaper clippings and telephone complaints fielded by staffers of People for the American Way, said Deana Duby, the group’s director of education policy.

One reason Spokane may have led the list is newspaper coverage.

The Spokane School District received three to six challenges a year during the past 15 years, but last school year was the first time The Spokesman-Review ran a story each time a book was challenged.

Members of People for the American Way accused some parents, such as those in Spokane, of trying to destroy educational freedom.

“Parents who claim to be protecting their own children by insisting on removal of written materials are making choices for other children as well,” Duby told reporters.

But Hamrick said that involvement helps - not hinders - the educational environment.

“Kids do better when parents are concerned,” she said.

Book challenges in Spokane are “very personal, very case-by-case,” said Fran Mester, language arts coordinator for Spokane schools. “I don’t feel it was a targeted effort.”

According to the study, the number of censorship attempts nationwide declined 10 percent between the 1993-94 and 1994-95 school years.

But People for the American Way says the trend during the past decade has shown a continual rise - both in Washington and nationwide.

In Spokane, five of the six complaints came from Spokane School District. Central Valley School District received one complaint.

Most concerns were raised by parents, whose objections included excessive violence, sexual content, racial stereotypes, foul language and alleged references to devil worship.

Books on the hit list included “The Five Chinese Brothers” by Claire Huchet; “Halloween ABC” by Eve Merriam; “Running Loose” by Chris Crutcher; “The Tale of the Dark” by Donna Bass; “Tar Beach” by Faith Ringgold; and “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee.

After studying the complaints, school districts decided to keep all of the books, but instructed teachers to offer students alternatives for “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

District officials learn from each challenge, Mester said.

“We respect people’s right to go through the process.”

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: BYLINE = David A. Lieb Staff writer Staff writer Carla K. Johnson contributed to this report.