School drops book about race from Y10 reading list

Budmouth Academy said the book would still be read in Year 11 and the sixth form

A school has dropped a novel about racism in the US from its Year 10 reading list after a parent complained about its content.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas was among texts being read aloud in front of class by students at Budmouth Academy in Weymouth.

But parent James Farquharson said it was laden with expletives and sexualised content, inappropriate for the age group.

The school said the book would remain on the list for Year 11 and the sixth form but "alternative texts that raise similar themes" would be "better suited" to its Year 10 pupils.

The book, published in 2017, is a commentary on the experience of young black-Americans, focusing on a 16-year old-girl as she navigates life between her poor neighbourhood and white, affluent classmates at school.

Debuting at number one on the New York Times' young adult best-seller list, it describes police brutality and racial bias, as one of her best friends is shot by a white police officer.

In the year it was published, it was one of the top ten most-challenged books in the US by schools and libraries who listed profanity, drug use, and sexual references as a reason to ban it, according to the American Library Association.

Speaking to BBC Radio Solent's Dorset Breakfast show, Mr Farquharson said the school held sessions where pupils would read aloud to the class.

He said: "I'm sure a 14-year-old girl or boy should not be expected to stand in front of their peers and read out some of the stuff you can find in this book.

"They shouldn't be normalising the sorts of sexual activity that's happening - and the language - to kids in their class."

Mr Farquharson said the book depicted white people "as the baddies", adding: "The concern I have is they are not balancing that out... and they might come away with an understanding that they are inherently baddies."

A school spokesperson said: "We acknowledge that the novel raises important themes and is promoted as appropriate for readers that are aged 14-plus, however, after careful consideration, we have decided that there are alternative texts that raise similar themes which are better suited to our students in Year 10."