MENTOR, Ohio — One book in fifth-grade classrooms dominated the discussion at the Mentor School Board meeting Tuesday evening. The biography “Colin Kaepernick: From Free Agent to Change Agent” will stay on school shelves for now.
RELATED: Mentor school board to again take up book challenge as public debate continues
“My kids will read this book and say, ‘yes.’ And for that reason, I need it in schools so my daughters can see someone that looks like them,” said Brandon Towns, the father of two elementary school students.
Another parent countered, “As the mother of four school children, I find this reading material completely outside the scope and jurisdiction of the public school system.”
The book was challenged in February by a group who identified themselves as “concerned Mentor taxpayers.” In their request for review, they pointed to Kaepernick’s political activism and views about police violence as inappropriate for young readers. The Eric Braun biography is stocked in the district’s fifth-grade classrooms to be used for independent reading.
In 2016, the former NFL quarterback received both criticism and praise for kneeling during the national anthem. Tuesday, critics and supporters of the Kaepernick biography echoed many of the same sentiments.
“Kaepernick’s book openly criticizes and dishonors the police and refers to them as pigs. I wanted to ask you: How does this square with our professing to teach mutual respect and kindness and respect to our students?” said one woman.
Another retorted, “Colin Kaepernick saw racial injustice in the country he loved and used his influence to call attention to it.”
District policy requires a library review committee, made up of district administrators, educators, media specialists, and a parent liaison, to review challenged books and weigh their merit against concerns raised. The committee voted 8-3 to keep the book in classrooms.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Superintendent Craig Heath explained the committee follows expert opinion and abides by the American Library Association’s School Library Bill of Rights. He said the Kaepernick biography was recommended for students in grades 4-8 and the majority of committee members believed the book provided necessary access to diverse viewpoints.
“A parent can share with the principal and teacher that they do not want their child to read this book,” Heath said. “However, this does not give the right to choose whether another child can read the book.”
Only four of the five school board members were present during the meeting Tuesday. Subsequently, the vote on whether to accept the committee’s recommendation was tied 2-2.
“This book is anything but right down the center or neutral and is unfit for 5th-grade classrooms,” said board member Anne Payne, who voted against the recommendation.
Board vice president Maggie Cook, who supported the recommendation, said, “I think when you do view it as a whole, you can see it’s balanced.”
A second resolution on the matter proposed removing the book from fifth-grade classrooms. It also tied 2-2 during a school board vote. Thus, no action will be taken and the biography will remain on its current shelves.
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