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'Ridiculous!' Internet slams Texas school district for nixing Emma Straub visit for using 'F word' online

One person wrote, 'This just... okay, I'm speechless. And @emmastraub is so good!!! What a loss for the kids of Katy ISD.'

HOUSTON, TEXAS: A Texas school district decided to cancel author Emma Straub's visit after discovering that New York Times bestselling author "regularly used" profanity on social media. Many people online expressed their discontent with this news, labelling the school's decision as "ridiculous."

On January 13, the novelist was scheduled to visit two elementary schools in the Katy Independent School District outside Houston to read her first children's picture book, 'Very Good Hats', to kindergarteners and first graders. However, the district decided to withdraw their invitation the day before Straub's visit, according to the Houston Chronicle. Administrators sent an email to parents and staffers from both schools on January 12, stating, "It has been brought to our attention that this author has regularly used inappropriate and foul language on her social media platforms — specifically repeated use of the 'F' word. This type of language, as you know, does not align with our school and community's values."

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The statement continued, "We apologize for any misunderstandings or inconvenience regarding this decision. Though, ensuring we are consistently modeling appropriate behaviors and expectations for our students, both in the classroom and via other campus opportunities, is of high priority."

Anne Russey, a mother, tweeted a screenshot of a complaint she discovered from a different parent, who urged the district "do better" when it came to screening guest speakers and included a tweet from Straub that was packed with profanity.

Russey tweeted along with screenshot of the administrators' email, "Once again @katyisd caves to the unrelenting demands of parents who insist on restricting access and experiences for ALL students and not just their own."

Several other people voiced their thoughts, and one of them wrote, "What?!? Did they expect the author to show up in a first grade classroom and start dropping F-bombs?? Meanwhile, I'm sure the Principal and other administrators *never* use foul language, because they're all busy perfectly modeling appropriate behavior *all* the time?" Another person, who was left "speechless" by the school's decision, wrote, "This just... okay, I'm speechless. And @emmastraub is so good!!! What a loss for the kids of Katy ISD."

A third person wrote, "Oh for f's sake. Do they expect her and all other children's book authors to use terms like 'heavens to Betsy' and 'fiddlesticks' all the time?" Another individual who agreed with Russey's viewpoint wrote, "Extreme circumstances call for extreme language. Anne, you were right and are justified to be aghast and expressive. Don't change (please)."

This other person who found the cancellation of Straub's visit "ridiculous" wrote, "I suppose Neil Gaiman, who wrote some of the greatest children’s books of our times, would never be invited to this school because he also wrote books for adults that contain sex scenes and he occasionally swears on social media? This is ridiculous."

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.