A Florida school library has removed a graphic adaptation of Anne Frank’s diary after a group of parents complained it was sexually explicit and trivialized by the Holocaust.
The book, titled “Diary of Anne Frank: Graphic Adaptation,” was pulled from shelves at Vero Beach High School in Indian River County after advocacy group Moms for Liberty expressed concerns.
It’s one of four books removed from school libraries in the county—as Florida public school officials continue to review literature deemed controversial by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Jennifer Pepin, president of the group’s Indian River chapter, told me WPTV that they objected to the book because it contained a “graphic scene” in which Anne Frank asks her boyfriend to expose herself to each other.
She also said that another scene, featuring the character walking among naked statues, was inappropriate.
‘Diary of Anne Frank: Graphic Adaptation’, based on the original 1947 diary, has been pulled from shelves at a Florida high school
“We think real history definitely needs to be studied, the Holocaust, the diary of Anne Frank,” she told the outlet, but took issue with the graphic novel’s visual depiction of sexuality.
After Moms For Liberty complained to the principal, the school decided that some of its scripts did not add to the themes of Holocaust awareness.
“When districts address Holocaust education, they do so without denying or minimizing Holocaust education events,” said Dr. Kira Shaft, district director of Academic Compliance and Equity.
“In these times, the content did not encourage the behaviors we would like our students to be able to access.”
Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, published in 1947, recounts her experiences hiding from the Nazis alongside her family in Amsterdam during World War II.
Sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1944, Anne Frank later died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945 – just weeks before she was liberated.
In the original diary, the young girl describes how she asked her friend if she wanted to show each other their bodies, and how she felt when she saw pictures of statues in an art history book.
Dr. Shaft confirmed that the original “Diary of Anne Frank” was still available in school libraries.
Book removed from Vero Beach High School in Indian River County after advocacy group Moms For Liberty expressed concerns
Anne Frank was sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp in 1944, and later died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in 1945.
Jennifer Pepin, president of Moms for Liberty’s Indian River chapter, said the group objected to the “graphic” scenes.
Dr. Kira Shaft, district director of academic compliance and equity, confirmed that the original book will remain in school libraries
The book The Diary of Anne Frank: The Graphic Adaptation was adapted by Ari Vollman, son of a Holocaust survivor, and illustrated by David Polonsky.
It is one of four books that have been removed from school libraries in the province, according to TCPalmalong with the other three parts of the series Titled “Assassination of Seasons”.
Moms for Liberty president Jennifer Pippen said the advocacy group would never challenge the accuracy of the original Anne Frank diaries.
“Real history needs education,” she said.
She added that the group has about 250 additional titles that it plans to challenge in the future.
Indian River County recently created a “County Objection Committee,” which will meet if there are formal challenges to take down the books at the district level.
It comes as banning books has been the subject of widespread controversy in Florida in recent months amid Gov. DeSantis’ crackdown on “awakened” literature in classrooms.
More than 100 titles have already been taken down in parts of the state after educational policies were passed allowing books to be removed based on complaints from parents.
Thousands more are under review Based on laws that restrict classroom topics that revolve around race, gender, and sexual orientation, including the Stop WOKE Act and the Parental Rights in Education Act.
The review, which began in January and sparked a backlash, is part of a larger nationwide purge of literature, mostly over topics about people of color or LGBTQ topics.
