In a Coeur d’Alene Press comment, soon-to-be-ex Coeur d’Alene school Trustee Tom Hamilton says (under the heading of “Fear Mongering and ‘Journalism’ combine to create hysteria where there is no issue”):
“The School Board banned nothing. We didn’t even consider banning anything. Of Mice and Men was
recommended to be moved from one category (whole group) to another (small group) by an Ad Hoc committee tasked with reviewing our teaching materials. It is a safeguard put in place long ago to ensure that materials used in instruction are vetted by a cross section of our community and it is a good process the rarely, if ever, results in a book be banned. The Board can choose to accept that or not and by the tone of the conversation there didn’t seem to be much support for taking the recommendation. I would suspect that OMM will continue to be taught in our schools for many years to come as it has been for many years prior. As to the movies listed, read more carefully. Those are all vetted as part of a course offering being explored at LCHS teaching movies as literature. Each of the titles listed by you were reviewed an approved. My goodness people like to get wound up …”
Question: Do you agree/disagree with Trustee Tom Hamilton that the action considered by the School Board re: “Of Mice and Men” is no big deal?