WTTW’s Chicago Tonight on PERSEPOLIS Ban

Persepolis1CoverLast night, WTTW’s Chicago Tonight aired a 15-minute segment trying to get to the real story about the reported Persepolis ban. Barbara Jones, Executive Director of ALA’s Office of Intellectual Freedom, joined anchor Carol Marin, Kristine Mayle with the Chicago Teachers Union, and Lane Tech students Katie McDermott and Alexa Repp for a roundtable discussion about the circumstances surrounding the Persepolis ban. Tellingly, Chicago Public School declined to send a representative to the discussion.

Confusion over the specific circumstances that led to the reported ban continues to dominate the discussion. Mayle reports that CTU is uncertain about how many schools received the order to remove the book, but that CTU believes the order appears to have come from high up at CPS. Jones spoke to ALA’s attempts to get more information about the ban through avenues provided by FOIA. McDermott and Repp talked about the protest they organized against the book’s removal, their doubts regarding CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett’s statement that the book was not banned, and the importance of making sure their voices are heard.

Watch the video below:

Watch March 18, 2013 – Controversy Over “Persepolis” on PBS. See more from Chicago Tonight.