Huck Finn Petition Goes to School Board

The Oregonian ^ | 10/29/02 | Clifton R. Chestnut

[mhking]

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[boomop1]

Bunch of nitwits who have too much time on their hands, bankrupt flakes who's children probably can't read.

[Aric2000]

Sounds like the same old Political correctness crap that I have come to expect from the public school system.

One of the MANY reasons that I homeschool my children.

[Huck]

Fools.

[Portnoy]

Funny. If they would just READ the frickin book, maybe they'd understand the whole point of the novel...

Although Jim is referred to as Nigger Jim throughout the story, it not until the end of the book, when Huck finally realizes that Jim is a man like any other man, does he refer to him as just plain "Jim".

[Reelect President Dubya]

Let me get this straight: the same people who listen to rap songs by Shug, Snoop Dog E Dog and Eminem that use the "N" word almost as much as they use the "F" sord are offended by 19th century novels by Samuel Clemens?

Do I have this right?

[goose1]

Bunch of idiots bring back the good ole days,Tom Sawyer,Little Black Sambo, Amos & Andy show I loved the guy named Lightin in that show these people and their PC BS is getting out of hand.

[Charles Martel]

To paraphrase Mr. Clemens,

"(Their) ignorance covered the whole earth like a blanket, and there was hardly a hole in it anywhere."

[j_tull]

How long before we hear of a petition to demolish the Jefferson Memorial?

[MacDorcha]

ok, so lets ban "Little Black Sambo" the "Briar Rabbit and Tar Baby" and while we're at it, all things relating to or about history.... wait... those idiots dont even know what those are anymore. how 'bout a more recent item then? lets ban all white writers/artists/performers who display any interest in communicating with the black population. Emanem? gone. Elvis? dead again. Larry Byrd? get the picture? these PC dipsticks need a few more pints. Huck Finn, like the other stories i mentioned, is a classic in the most pure of terms. i dont care much for some of Sam Clemens political satire, but his works in the world of Tom and Huck, along with Con. Yankee in King Authors court? sheer and utter perfect story telling on his part. i suppose next theyll want to start using DoubleSpeek and calling curfews while burning books in the town squares.... ::sigh:: im only 18, and these people make me feel like im having flash backs of WWII...

[LiteKeeper]

The inmates are taking over the asylum!

[MacDorcha]

"PC BS"

i just noticed... CBS is three quarters of PCBS!!! lol (same goes for PBS)

[Huck]

The character of Huck is one of my heroes. Here's a kid who has such a great moral compass. He simply can't help but do what he thinks is right. At the turning point of the novel, he decides to help Jim even though he truly believes that he will go to Hell for it. He sacrifices his eternal soul to help Jim escape. That is why I admire Huck so. I look at myself and I realize I would more likely do the self-serving thing. There is one point where he goes into the sunken riverboat to rescue the doublecrossing crooks. I wouldn't have risked my neck for them. But he did it instinctively. He was a great little guy.

And Jim shows incredible affection and love for Huck. He pampers him. Jim was superstitious and in some ways ignorant, but he was older than Huck and treated him with tenderness and care. When they discover each other afetr having been separated, and are so happy to see each other, well, that part gets me misty eyed every time I read it.

It's a beautiful portrait not just of adventure, but of doing the right thing in spite of the times in which you live, of the better part of human nature. It is a wonderful book. Nothing against Little Black Sambo, but that's not even in the same ballpark--not even the same sport. Huck Finn is a brilliant book.

But hey, what do I know? That's just what it means to me.

[Physicist]

"You have to be African American to understand what we've been through," he told the school board.

This should earn him an Academy Award, now that Halle Berry has opened the door for him.

[Governor]

YES.

[Corin Stormhands]

"You have to be African American to understand what we've been through,"

Well, that and alive in the 1800s...

[Illbay]

"And turning to news from the entertainment world, Rapper JuggyZ today released his newest CD. Entitled Niggaz Gonna Rip Dat Smile Offayoface!, JuggyZ's latest is a veritable pornucopia of mysogyny, racially-charged invective and scatological explorations such as we've come to expect from this brilliant young 'artist'.

"Responding to calls from black conservative leader Rev. Jesse Patterson that the Hip-Hop community begin policing ITSELF and turn away from such mental and aural garbage, JuggyZ's publicist, SnotD, responded 'Yo, man, we gonna whap that nigga Patta-son upside he big ol' haid, man!'"

[dead]

"You have to be African American to understand what we've been through," he told the school board.

What the hell has Johnnie been through that has been so trying? He has never been a slave. He has never been bought and sold. He has never been subjected to Jim Crow laws. But because of his skin color, he claims to have suffered. This group identity is a crutch for Johnnie. It provides him with instantaneous victimhood, without having to go through the bother of actually being victimized.

This attitude, no doubt reinforced by his white liberal teachers, will ensure that Johnnie gets absolutely nowhere in life, and it provides him with a no-fault-of-his own, ready-made excuse when he gets there.

The essays cover the contributions of African Americans in science, language arts and other disciplines, said Carolyn Leonard, compliance officer for Portland Public Schools. The essays have been challenged for their authenticity, but have been used by teachers around the world.

Teach them the wrong stuff, if that’s what makes them feel good. Accuracy no longer has anything to do with the word “correct.”

[Congressman Billybob]

Huckleberry Finn is the greatest American novel to date. It is the second, and remains one of the most powerful, to attack the then-prevailing racial attitudes in America. (Uncle Tom's Cabin was the first such book -- powerful in its effects, but not of any remarkable quality of writing.)

Teachers do not need "sensitivity training" to teach using Huckleberry Finn. What they need is competence in English and American literature, and an understanding of the difference between quality writing and drivel.

But that's too much to ask, I suppose.

Congressman Billybob

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