(TheIndependentStar.com) – Little House on the Prairie is a popular children’s book series that became a TV show in the 1970s and 80s. Based on true events in the life of author Laura Ingalls Wilder, the story portrayed life as a pioneer in the late 1800s. It was a wholesome adaptation that holds a special place in the hearts of many who grew up reading the books and watching the TV show, but now, social justice warriors are going after this beloved treasure.
Cambridge University put a label on the book series cautioning readers of harmful content. The trigger warning says the stories contain racism, colonialism, and slavery references, which could upset some readers.
Cambridge University archive slaps 'trigger warnings' on classic children's books https://t.co/L32mduTUet
— Daily Mail U.K. (@DailyMailUK) October 25, 2021
The school put this label on the children’s books due to Wilder’s description of Native Americans, which the school declared stereotypical. Cambridge librarians also flagged books by Dr. Seuss for cultural insensitivity and marked L Frank Baum for white supremacy.
Taxpayers in the UK are footing the bill for this project through the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council. The aim is to slap trigger warnings on various books in the archive to make materials less harmful to readers. They maintain it is necessary to protect potential readers from damaging and upsetting content. The project is in conjunction with the University of Florida under the US National Endowment for the Humanities.
Critics say the labels are unnecessary as the point of literature is to expose children to different worlds and times. American author Judy Blume noted that trigger warnings are useless because people will always find something that offends them in any book they read.
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