Texas teacher allegedly loses job for reading an illustrated version of Anne Frank’s diary to class

A graphic version of Anne Frank’s diary, which includes some sexual content, has sparked controversy in several public schools in the US. A teacher in Texas was fired for reading a passage from the book to her eighth-grade students, while other districts have banned or reviewed the book.

A man holds a copy of the graphic novel version of The Diary of Anne Frank, by Israeli writer-director Ari Folman and illustrator David Polonsky, in Paris on September 18, 2017.(Gent Shkullaku/AFP)

The book, titled ‘Anne Frank’s Diary: The Graphic Adaptation’, was published in 2018 with the authorization of the Anne Frank Fonds, the foundation that owns the rights to Frank’s diary.

The book is based on the original handwritten diary of Frank, a Jewish girl who hid from the Nazis in Amsterdam during World War II and died in a concentration camp. The book restores some parts of the diary that were omitted from the most popular editions, such as Frank’s exploration of her sexuality and body.

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The teacher who was fired worked at Hamshire-Fannett Independent School District, near Houston. She had assigned the book to her students and read some portions aloud in class, including a passage where Frank describes male and female genitalia in detail. The passage comes right after Frank writes about hearing gunshots as Allied forces parachuted from a crashing plane.

The district said that the book was not approved for classroom use and that there was an active investigation. The teacher was sent home last week and replaced by a substitute. The district also apologized to the parents and students for the “inappropriate” content.

Some parents were outraged by the book and the teacher’s actions. One parent of twin boys in the class told a local news channel that the teacher made a girl read aloud another passage where Frank reveals her feelings for another girl. The parent called it “not OK” and said that it was “bad enough” that the teacher had assigned the book as homework.

The graphic adaptation of Frank’s diary has also faced criticism and censorship in other school districts. In 2020, it was temporarily removed from another Texas district after a parent complained about its sexual content. In Florida, it was permanently banned from one district and put under review in another. A Jewish Republican lawmaker in Florida described the book as “Anne Frank pornography.”

The Anne Frank Fonds has defended the book and said that it was appropriate for young readers.

“We consider the book of a 12-year-old girl to be appropriate reading for her peers,” board member Yves Kugelmann told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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The book is part of a larger trend of conservative backlash against books that deal with sexuality, gender identity, and race in schools. Teachers have been punished and books have been challenged or banned for featuring authors such as Ta-Nahisi Coates, who writes about racial issues.

Jewish books such as “Anne Frank’s Diary”, “Maus” and “The Fixer” have also been targeted by some activists who find them objectionable.