A speaking engagement featuring celebrated children's author Jerry Craft was recently canceled in Texas and his graphic novels were pulled from school libraries, following complaints from a small group of parents.

Craft, the author of several graphic novels aimed at middle school-aged students, was set to speak virtually at a Katy Independent School District event on Oct. 4. However, The Houston Chronicle reports that the event was quietly canceled after 400 parents accused Craft of promoting critical race theory in his work.

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"This petition is to ask KISD administration and superintendent to cancel the Zoom call and stop promotion of these books which are wrought with critical race theory in the form of teaching children that their white privilege inherently comes with microaggressions which must be kept in check,” the petition read in part. "Craft's writings, New Kid and Class Act, are being promoted to the students and their parents without any notice of the overt Critical Race Theory teachings throughout both books."

In addition to canceling the event, the district pulled Craft's book from school libraries and launched an official review. "Pending the outcome of a review committee, school day activities associated with the selection under review are temporarily placed on hold," the KISD said in a statement. "School activities pertaining to selections under review and hosted outside of the instructional day, however, may continue as a formal review process takes place."

The district also shared in the statement that "Katy ISD library books are routinely reviewed through this process" and that students may still read Craft's book outside school district hours if they choose.

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Following news that Craft's event had been canceled, several parents spoke out against the decision on the Katy ISD online forum, with one mother writing, "These books are amazing, and it's infuriating to see lies, ignorance, and hate prevent our KISD students from experiencing this author and his works as part of their education." Another parent wrote, "A whopping 444 parents signed the petition…for a district of over 88,000…Seriously?"

Critical race theory is an academic concept based on the idea that race is a social construct, and that racism is a combination of both individual bias and prejudice embedded in legal systems and policies. While the concept is more than 40 years old and aims to help people understand how American racism has shaped public policy, critics consider the concept to be "divisive discourse" that's meant to pit people of color against white people.

Craft's graphic novels are based on the lived experiences of his own two sons and focus in large part on the culture and experiences of present-day Black preteens. His novels have won several literary awards, including the Newbery Medal, the Coretta Scott King Author Award and Kirkus Prize for Young Readers' Literature. Craft has since responded to the ban on Twitter, writing, "???????? Apparently, I'm teaching critical race theory."

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Source: The Houston Chronicle