BOSTON 鈥� Six Dr. Seuss books 鈥� including 鈥淎nd to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street鈥� and 鈥淚f I Ran the Zoo鈥� 鈥� will stop being published because of racist and insensitive imagery, the business that preserves and protects the author's legacy said Tuesday.
鈥淭hese books portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong,鈥� Dr. Seuss Enterprises told The Associated Press in a statement that coincided with the late author and illustrator鈥檚 birthday.
鈥淐easing sales of these books is only part of our commitment and our broader plan to ensure Dr. Seuss Enterprises鈥�
The other books affected are 鈥淢cElligot鈥檚 Pool,鈥� 鈥淥n Beyond Zebra!,鈥� 鈥淪crambled Eggs Super!,鈥� and 鈥淭he Cat鈥檚 Quizzer.鈥�
The decision to cease publication and sales of the books was made last year after months of discussion, the company, which was founded by Seuss' family, told AP.
鈥淒r. Seuss Enterprises listened and took feedback from our audiences including teachers, academics and specialists in the field as part of our review process. We then worked with a panel of experts, including educators, to review our
In 鈥淎nd to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street," an Asian person is portrayed wearing a conical hat, holding chopsticks, and eating from a bowl. 鈥淚f I Ran the Zoo鈥� includes a drawing of two bare-footed African men wearing what appear to be grass skirts with their hair tied above their heads.
Books by Dr. Seuss 鈥� who was born Theodor Seuss Geisel in Springfield, Massachusetts, on March 2, 1904 鈥�- have been translated into dozens of languages as well as in braille and are sold in more than 100 countries. He died in 1991.
He remains popular, earning an estimated $33 million before taxes in 2020, up from just $9.5 million five years ago, the company said. Forbes listed him No. 2 on its highest-paid dead celebrities of 2020, behind only the late pop star Michael Jackson.
Random House Children Books, Dr. Seuss' publisher, issued a brief statement Tuesday: 鈥淲e respect the decision of Dr. Seuss Enterprises (DSE) and the work of the panel that reviewed this content last year, and their recommendation.鈥�
As adored as Dr. Seuss is by millions around the world for the positive values in many of his works, including environmentalism and tolerance, there has been increasing criticism in recent years over the way Blacks, Asians and others are drawn in some of his most beloved children鈥檚 books, as well as in his earlier advertising and propaganda illustrations.
The National Education Association, which founded Read Across America Day in 1998 and deliberately aligned it with Geisel鈥檚 birthday, has for several years deemphasized Seuss and encouraged a more diverse reading list for children.
School districts across the country have also moved away from Dr. Seuss, prompting Loudoun County, Virginia, schools just outside Washington, D.C., to douse
鈥淩esearch in recent years has revealed strong racial undertones in many books written/illustrated by Dr. Seuss,鈥� the school district said in a statement.
In 2017, a school librarian in Cambridge, Massachusetts, criticized a gift of 10 Seuss books from first lady Melania Trump, saying many of his works were 鈥渟teeped in racist propaganda, caricatures, and harmful stereotypes.鈥�
In 2018, a Dr. Seuss museum in his hometown of Springfield removed a mural that included an Asian stereotype.
鈥淭he Cat in the Hat," one of Seuss' most popular books, has received criticism, too, but will continue to be published for now.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises, however, said it is 鈥渃ommitted to listening and learning and will continue to review our entire portfolio."
The move to cease publication of the books drew immediate reaction on social media from those who called it another example of 鈥渃ancel culture."
鈥淲e've now got foundations book burning the authors to whom they are dedicated. Well done, everyone," conservative commentator and author Ben Shapiro tweeted.
Others approved of the decision.
鈥淭he books we share with our children matter. Books shape their world view and tell them how to relate to the people, places, and ideas around them. As grown-ups, we have to examine the worldview we are creating for our children, including carefully re-examining our
Numerous other popular children鈥檚 series have been criticized in recent years for alleged racism.
In the 2007 book, 鈥淪hould We Burn Babar?,鈥� the author and educator Herbert R. Kohl contended that the 鈥淏abar the Elephant鈥� books were celebrations of colonialism because of how the title character leaves the jungle and later returns to 鈥渃ivilize鈥� his fellow animals.
One of the books, 鈥淏abar鈥檚 Travels,鈥� was removed from the shelves of a British library in 2012 because of its alleged stereotypes of Africans. Critics also have faulted the 鈥淐urious George鈥� books for their premise of a white man bringing home a monkey from Africa.
And Laura Ingalls Wilder鈥檚 portrayals of Native Americans in her 鈥淟ittle House On the Prairie鈥� novels have been faulted so often that the American Library Association removed her name in 2018 from a lifetime achievement award it gives out each year. The association still gives out the Geisel Award for 鈥渢he most distinguished American book for beginning readers published in English in the United States during the preceding year.鈥�
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AP National Writer Hillel Italie contributed from New York.
Mark Pratt, The Associated Press
