While the publisher of this coloring book for children maintains that it is historically accurate, I can't help but feel that the graphic images are disturbing and inappropriate for children who are young enough for coloring books. Are there other coloring books out there that depict burning buildings and people killing others? Since when did terrorism, death, and violence become suitable fodder for children's coloring books?
This can only serve to worsen the discrimination, hatred, and stereotypes that exist toward Muslims. Aren't there better, less inflammatory, ways of teaching young children about 9/11?
By the way, just last year this same publisher brought American children The Tea Party Coloring Book for Kids.
Sign the petition to discontinue the 9/11 coloring book at Change.org.
Wow! As an elementry school teacher, I cannot even begin to express how horrible this is. This is not appropriate for kids!
ReplyDeletewhat happened to coloring books with flowers, birds, beaches and mountains-- kids not happy enough with those?
ReplyDeleteThis is absolutely disgusting! Only in America??? Where are peoples' brains???
ReplyDeleteDo we know that this is real? There is no link to any 'original' nor is the publisher named anywhere that I can see. Perhaps there is more to this story that we don't know? How do we know this was intended for children? Perhaps it is for wounded soldiers in rehab? I don't know, I can't make out the words for context.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, what good is signing some 'petition'? Is it American? If so, we have freedoms here and people can choose whether or not to buy this coloring book and we also have the right to boycott the publisher and whoever might do business with them. But, we can't do that if we don't have that information. I have a feeling that this is fake hate mongering. Why aren't they throwing the publisher's name out there?
A very strange coloring book. My wife and I have been looking for coloring books to find ones suitable for a disabled grand-daughter so I have been thinking of what works and what doesn't. I don't think this kind of violent scene is appropriate for younger children, and that is who the market for coloring books is.
ReplyDeleteForgetting the subject matter, would one have a coloring book showing Nazis aiming rifles as Jews?
Well, Lynn - here's a link about the book and who published it. It's real alright. There's lots of info on the web about it. Says how low Americans can sink when they can damage their own childrens psyche this way
ReplyDeletehttp://news.sympatico.ca/oped/coffee-talk/911_coloring_book_intends_to_teach_kids_the_truth_/9c59d2d5
Is that how we teach children history??? Do Japanese children have colouring books showing the American planes coming with the bombs and then the people running in the streets with no skin and then the Americans setting up hospitals NOT to treat the damaged people but to study the radiation effects???
Personally I think the book is stupid and inflammatory, needlessly. Shooting anybody except in self defense is not right.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I could argue that the so-called stereotypes in this coloring book are no worse than the portrayal of non-Muslims in the Quran and hadith. It seems that Muslims always get their underwear tied up in knots when somebody says something unkind about them, their religion, or heaven forbid, their dear prophet.
Yet the vile words about infidels are of no bother to them - move along. Perhaps, who knows, this attitude may explain the treatment of non-Muslims in Islamic societies.
So when are we going to see Muslims address the "discrimination, hatred, and stereotypes" of non-Muslims in Islamic societies and communities?
From what I have seen of the book and what has been printed online, the book presents the facts in simple form for children.
ReplyDeleteI plan to order the book to see for myself. To be fair, you should too. Publisher: http://www.coloringbook.com/weshallneverforget911coloringbook.aspx
There is nothing wrong with teaching children the truth about terror. Why should the facts be glossed over? Who else but Muslim jihadists perpetrated the crimes of 9/11 in the name of Islam with quotes from the Qur’an? Osama bin Laden was a terrorist. Showing a Seal aiming a gun at him is not comparable to a Nazi aiming at Jews! In fact the statement is ludicrous. The Japanese attacked the U. S. They waged war all over Indochina. They were NOT innocent victims.
Muslims should be teaching their children about terror since they are the primary victims and perpetrators today.
Susie, did you ever post a protest about the Saudi textbooks filled with hatred against brother Muslims and nonMuslims alike?
According to The Center for Religious Freedom at Freedom House: ”…The textbooks "reflect an ideology of hatred against the other, against Christians, Jews other Muslims, for instance, Shiites and the majority Sunni Muslims and all others who do not subscribe to the Wahhabi doctrine," Shea says.
The center's report cites numerous examples. It quotes a fourth-grade text as telling students to "love for the sake of God and to hate for the sake of God." The report says that textbooks instruct students that Christians and Jews are "apes and pigs" and warns students not to "greet," "befriend" or "respect" non-believers…
…(Director) Shea says any changes in that direction are miniscule.
"They have made some changes," she says. "Sometimes though, the changes aren't all they're cracked up to be. For example, they will say, 'You have to hate the unbeliever but to treat them justly.' That's supposed to be an improvement…”
Saudi Arabian schoolbooks reveal rampant anti-Semitism gripping the Muslim world
…The expose by BBC1’s Panorama documentary:
The BBC's Panorama programme has found evidence that Muslim schoolchildren in England are being taught anti-Semitic and homophobic material from a Saudi textbook.
The syllabus used at a network of more than 40 weekend schools details how the hands and feet are chopped off as punishment for thieves and teaches that the penalty for gay sex is execution. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11808658
Those text books have PICTURES of amputations! This for 6 year olds.
Speaking of damaging children’s psyches: The Palestinians are teaching their children to hate the Jews and calling them apes and pigs. There are many, many videos on YouTube of cute little Palestinian children being prompted to hate, taught to love death, dressed up like jihadis.
Your time and energy might be better spent protesting the organized, violent Jew hatred and nonMuslim hatred in Saudi and the Islamic world, Susie. It is not in the West or the infidel world where Muslims are being persecuted and murdered each and every day. Conversely, that is happening to Jews, Hindus, Christians, Buddhists all over the Muslim world. In truth, it is Muslims who discriminate against brother Muslims and infidels alike.
Have you ever met a Saudi or a Muslim who did not hate the Jews?
It seems as if you have forgotten Islamic terror atrocities like 9/11, 7/7, Beslan, Bali, Madrid and thousands more, but the rest of the world shall never forget!
I'm not muslim and don't like stereotypes of any kind done by anybody. What I think is so sick here is a colouring book for children portraying a very sad event. It's not right. It's stupid and it plays with the minds of children in a very bad way.
ReplyDeleteThis is absolutely foul. Why on Earth would someone think it's okay to give something like this to children?
ReplyDeleteI just don't understand people.
Has anyone ever seen a Chic bible comic book? They are cartoons about such things as women being sluts or homosexuals going to hell etc...they are big in Texas but I have seen a few here as well. One was given to my teenage daughter (14) and I found it equally disgusting. People are so busy coming up with new and interesting ways to depict their own hate...too bad such energy isnt focused on something worthwhile.
ReplyDeleteHere is an interesting report on Al Jazeera
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.aljazeera.net/americas/2011/09/06/colouring-books-colouring-young-minds
Freedom of Speech and Expression. Get over it.
ReplyDelete~from a non-racist, atheistic, white guy that believes in equality.
Wendy
ReplyDeletewhile I certainly can understand your distaste for the coloring book (and I am writing this before I have read the links in depth), I would appreciate it if you could take a moment and stop lumping all Americans in with this endeavor. While I am sure there would be some people who would buy it, just by seeing the one photo I cannot imagine that this will have a broad spectrum appeal.
while we are always reminded that not all Muslims are terorists, we must also remember that not all Americans are haters of Muslims and would probably find a better way to explain 9/11.
Shame shame shame on the people who even thought of putting such an image in a colouring book. Even if it weren't for the Muslim figure it would be a very disturbing image.
ReplyDeleteMy only hope, as Oby above says, is that very few adults (teachers, parents, whatever) will put this book into the hands of the kids around them.