Deborah George

Revisiting The Great Textbook War

Fifty years ago this month, the Kanawha County School Board approved new multicultural textbooks. Violent protests followed when some parents said the books undermined their beliefs. During a summer of unrest, boycotts shut down businesses. And in the fall, thousands of families kept their children home from school. The textbook war made national headlines, created a launching pad for the new right political movement and placed school boards at the heart of the culture wars.