The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks details a true story of bioethics, medical technology, and racial inequality, and it is coming under fire from some Tennessee parents. The “immortal” cell line enabled a new generation of medical research, and such innovations as the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, in vitro fertilization and more.
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Lacks’ cells – called HeLa cells – were the first human cells to reproduce in culture. Skloot notes L&N’s assistant principal has offered his support, telling her that students will next read Fahrenheit 451, which, ironically, covers book burnings.
Rebecca Skloot’s book tells the story of the African-American woman whose cancer cells were removed from her body without consent as she lay in the “coloured” ward of a hospital in 1951. There are about 59,000 students in the school system, which includes about 90 schools.”I was shocked in that there was so much graphic information in the book”, Sims said. Also: Using her finger, Henrietta found a tumor (caused by a sexually transmitted disease) on her cervix, just as women find lumps in their breasts with their fingers.
The school gave Sims’ son another book to read but said that teachers have guidelines – and autonomy – in selecting their summer reading choices. “There’s so many ways to say things without being that graphic in nature, and that’s the problem I have with this book”. She has even used the term as “pornographic” in other media interviews for the content in the book. “If someone comes along and tries to take the book out of the curriculum, then that affects me and my child”.
Knox County Schools tightened its policies and procedures on its instructional materials about two years ago when a parent raised concerns around the book “Robopocalypse”.
The writer of a Henrietta Lacks biography has hit back at a USA parent who wants it banned from schools for being “pornographic”.
Alves, who has not read the book, said her perspective is that the book deals with medical ethics, “Which you could see being applicable at the L&N STEM Academy”.
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Sims however, plans to take her appeal as far as she can, “because I just feel that strongly about it being out of the hands of our children”.
