You won’t see six Dr. Seuss books at the Thunder Bay Public Library anymore, because of what it calls racist content.
It’s following the lead of Dr. Seuss Enterprises, the entertainment company which carries on the writer’s legacy.
Dr. Seuss Enterprises said it will no longer publish or license “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” “If I Ran the Zoo,” “McElligot’s Pool,” “On Beyond Zebra!,” “Scrambled Eggs Super!” and “The Cat’s Quizzer.”
In a statement, the company says those books “portray people in ways that are hurtful and wrong.”
The library adds it will still carry Dr. Seuss’ other books, saying the remaining titles are not “harmful and hurtful” and have been popular with generations of young readers.
Library officials say they want to do better, noting this is a decision where they choose anti-racism over freedom of expression. They add the fact that they carried the titles to begin with means they need to improve the library’s collections policy.
“We will, therefore, be reaching out to various diverse groups and organizations in the city to work with us on making appropriate and informed changes to our policy to ensure that it is in alignment with our anti racist aspirations,” a statement reads.
