Barcelona removes books like ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ and ‘Sleeping Beauty’ from elementary schools because they perpetuate sexist stereotypes, apparently

Demi Good

An elementary school in Barcelona, Spain, removed more than 200 children’s books from its library because they perpetuate sexist stereotypes, according to a new report from Spanish newspaper El Pais. 

What are the details?

Two books to receive the ax include “Little Red Riding Hood” and “Sleeping Beauty.”

“[B]ooks for learning the alphabet, colors, and habits” were also reportedly discovered to perpetuate sexist stereotypes.

The elementary school in question — The Tàber School — is governed by the Catalan government, and noted that other schools in the city are also taking inventory of potentially problematic books as well.

The newspaper reported that at least 30 percent of the books in The Tàber School’s library were considered “toxic,” and 10 percent were written from a “gender perspective.”

The report explained that 60 percent of the books had problems that were far less serious.

One mother involved in the book selections told the paper that they were not looking to ban specific books, and just wanted to address sexism on a broader scale.

“Society is changing and is more aware of the issue of gender, but this is not being reflected in stories,” parent Anna Tutzo explained.

Tutzo said one of the recurring themes is toxic masculinity.

“In violent situations, even though they are just small pranks, it is the boy who acts against the girl. This sends a message about who can be violent and against whom,” she said.

“Kids are like sponges and absorb everything around them,” she added, “which allows sexist stereotypes to be normalized.”

What else?

According to the report, the schools are seeking to incorporate more “gender-balanced” books.

At another school in the area, the parent organization created a “gender-equality commission” to review the books.

“The type of books children read is very important because traditional books replicate gender stereotypes and it is good to have books that break these,” Estel Clusella, head of the school’s parents association, told the outlet.

“At the age of 5, children have already established gender roles, they know what it is to be a boy or a girl and what that means. So it’s key to work with a gender perspective from the infancy stage,” she added.

http://www.domigood.com/2019/04/barcelona-removes-books-like-little-red.html?m=1