'Maus' author Art Spiegelman to speak virtually at University of Tennessee Jewish studies program
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After a Tennessee county school system banned his Pulitzer Prize-winning book, author and illustrator Art Spiegelman will speak virtually at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
The book "Maus," a graphic novel that tells the story of Spiegelman's Jewish parents living in 1940s Poland during the Holocaust, was banned in McMinn County Schools in January because of "rough" language and a nude drawing of a woman. The ban drew international attention.
The lecture, hosted by UT's Fern and Manfred Steinfeld Program in Judaic Studies and sponsored by several other departments, starts at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday on Zoom.
You can register to attend and submit questions for Spiegelman at www.calendar.utk.edu.
The book, which portrays Nazis as cats and Jewish people as mice, follows Spiegelman's parents through their internment in Auschwitz. The graphic novel was part of the school district's eighth-grade English curriculum. Published in 1986, it's the only graphic novel to have won a Pulitzer Prize.
SOCIAL MEDIA BACKLASH: Defense of 'Maus' erupts online after McMinn County schools remove it from curriculum
McMinn County Schools Board banned the book after discussing with instructional supervisors how to teach students about the Holocaust.
"The values of the county are understood," McMinn County Director of Schools Lee Parkison said during the meeting. "There is some rough, objectionable language in this book."
Spiegelman told The Tennessean the board's decision was "absurd" and he was disturbed by school boards nationwide banning books.
"This is not about left versus right," he said. "This is about a culture war that's gotten totally out of control."
'MAUS' AUTHOR SPEAKS: 'Absurd:' Art Spiegelman speaks out on Tennessee school board's decision to remove 'Maus'
'MAUS' REMOVED: What we know about the removal of Holocaust book 'Maus' by a Tennessee school board
Rebecca Wright: Higher education reporter at Knox News
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: 'Maus' author Art Spiegelman to speak to University of Tennessee
