Nineteen Fifty-Six Vol. 2 No. 5

wrong, what they actually knew about the world around
them.
“Anti-literacy laws were written in response to the rise of
abolitionism in the north,” author Patrick Breen said.
Black people kept learning how to read and write despite
the consequences they would face. Some slave owners
encouraged this as well. The more educated a Black
person was, the more sophisticated jobs they received.
The laws and codes put in place were just a bandage on
a gaping wound. Nothing could stop enslaved and free
African Americans from becoming literate. Lawmakers in
the South could no longer constrict Black people’s view
on the world.
“Literacy promotes thought and raises consciousness,”
Sarah Roth, professor and creator of The Nat Turner
Project, said. “It helps you to get outside of your own
cultural constraints and think about things from a totally
different angle.”
Literacy became one of the greatest tools in ending
slavery in America. However, it didn’t end racially charged
censorship in America.
With more and more Black people seeking the highest
levels of education and creativity, censorship efforts also
grew.
The rise of the civil rights movement spurred many Black
leaders, writers and teachers to the forefront of change.
Black stories and voices were, once again, an important
talking point in American politics.
Malcolm X was one of the leading voices. His opinions
on non-peaceful protesting, Black nationalism and Black
pride dominated much of the Civil Rights movement. His
words led to him being followed, attacked and eventually
assassinated.
Just like they tried to do during his life, white people
tried to censor Malcolm’s words posthumously.
Malcolm, along with writer Alex Haley, wrote The
Autobiography of Malcolm X. The book detailed Malcolm’s
life, death, political views and the pivotal trip to Mecca. It
was an important piece of Black history and media.
That didn’t stop people from trying to limit the novel’s
significance.
In 2014, teachers at Public School 201 in Flushing, New
York told fourth grade students that Malcolm was a “bad”
and “violent” activist. The teachers also forbade the
students from writing about Malcolm.
About 43% of the 477 students at the school in 2014 were
Black.
Parents were upset about the matter, stating that the
teachers were imposing their personal opinions on the
students. The department of education in Flushing
responded to the parents’ concerns.
“Malcolm X is a historical figure and a hero to many
New Yorkers that we believe should be celebrated in our
schools,” agency spokesman Devon Puglia said.
Erasing pieces of Black history isn’t a new trend, but in
2021, it found a new target: critical race theory.
The term “critical race theory” was created more than 40
years ago by legal scholars Derrick Bell, Kimberlé Crenshaw
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