Of Mice and Men—and Ableism—at Paul G. Blazer High School
Of Mice and Men—and Ableism—at Paul G. Blazer High School
How did a 30-year-old worksheet containing the R-word end up as a classroom assignment?
When Kendall Dixon, a 17-year-old senior at Paul G. Blazer High School in Ashland, walked into English class last Monday, they never could’ve anticipated the day’s assignment: a worksheet introducing Of Mice and Men that contained multiple instances of the R-word throughout.
“My first feeling was shock and being very uncomfortable,” says Kendall. “I knew that we were about to read a book, but I didn't know what it was or what it was about. This was my first introduction.”
In case you’ve forgotten the plot of the 1937 John Steinbeck classic—or never read it—the (grim) Great Depression-era book tells the story of migrant workers George Milton and Lennie Small, a man with intellectual differences. The worksheet assigned to students at Blazer about the novella, a portion of which is reprinted below, contained several questions using the R-word, including: Have you ever known a mentally [R-word] person? What do you expect a mentally [R-word] person to be like? How do you think you would feel if you were talking to a mentally [R-word] person?
“Nobody really said anything or seemed to have any reaction in class. They all just carried on and talked about it like this was just some average day—like nothing was wrong at all,” Kendall recalls. “I felt super anxious the entire time. I felt like I couldn't speak up, because everybody else seemed like they didn’t care, so it would be weird if I pointed anything out.”
Kendall’s sister, Riley Dixon, who graduated from Blazer just last year, decided to take action after her sibling revealed what had happened. “I saw [Kendall] posted on their Instagram story that they were crying and upset in the bathroom [after class]. So, obviously, I was scared and messaged them. That's when they called me and told me what was going on. And I was like, ‘Well, I'm not having that.’”
Riley created a now-viral Facebook post drawing attention to the insensitive and offensive assignment, which—as of publishing—has almost 217 likes and 151 shares.
“Today, at Paul G. Blazer High School, a neurodivergent student felt personally attacked by an ableist 30-year-old assignment…to the point of tears,” Riley wrote. “The outdated terminology, the assumption that those with mental disorders ‘look’ & ‘move’ differently?? I mean this picture says it all for you.”
The amount of painstaking work advocates and families have put into erasing this slur from the country’s collective vocabulary makes it all the more shocking that an assignment containing the term was deemed acceptable for use in a public school. Major efforts to stop individuals and groups from using the R-word have been widespread throughout the nation for the past 15-plus years, and in many parts of the country, this situation would seem almost unbelievable. Campaigns like R-Word: Spread the Word to End the Word have proven successful in collecting “millions of digital and physical pledges to end the R-word” with each pledge a “personal commitment to acknowledge the hurt caused by the R-word.”
Even the federal government has taken steps to squash the R-word. Enacted in 2010 after a unanimous Senate vote, Rosa’s Law replaced any mention of “mental [R-word]" in federal documents with “intellectual disability”—including all documents within the Department of Education.
“I really didn't expect the school to do anything about [the assignment], because they've been doing little things here and there like this for years,” says Riley. “I just thought it wouldn't hurt to do something about it. So, I made the post, and a lot of people saw it pretty quick and started sharing. I was honestly surprised to see how many people agreed and were upset about it.”
Riley’s post not only sounded the alarm about an ableist assignment at the high school—and raised questions about how something like this could occur in 2021—but inspired others to begin publicly sharing personal stories on Facebook about their own damaging or discriminatory experiences at Blazer.
“I think sharing our story started a chain of tons of people sharing theirs, which is only going to bring more attention to it,” says Riley. “There's a lot more, I guess, evidence that we're not making this up, and this is not just a one-time thing. This has been happening for a long time.”
In light of the outrage from parents, students and community members on social media, Principal Jamie Campbell addressed the English class the next day about the assignment. “It didn’t go very well. It felt very negatively charged,” says Kendall. “I felt like, basically, he just wanted to talk to me directly, but instead he did it in a more comfortable setting in front of the entire class.” (Kendall notes that they are not aware of anyone in the class who ended up turning in the worksheet, and it was not graded.)
With such widespread public awareness about how damaging the R-word is for so many individuals, the negligence it takes to place an assignment containing these words in front of students seems like far more than an oversight or slip up. But that’s just how Principal Campbell and Superintendent Sean Howard couched it to the Ashland Daily Independent last Thursday:
“It is very clear to see that this was an instance of using an outdated resource without fully reviewing that resource before putting it in students’ hands,” Campbell said. “...It wasn’t reviewed properly.”
“You will find teachers all over our commonwealth that are working night and day, trying to find any resource they can find,” Campbell said. “This is a really good lesson. We need to hit standards, and we’ve got to do what’s right by our kids.”
If the best worksheet that a teacher is able to “find” pertaining to one of the most commonly taught books in American high schools contains a slur, there’s a serious lack of ability to properly research and vet materials going on among faculty. (The teacher could, alternatively, make a worksheet themselves for the class if all pre-made versions are offensively outdated.)
What’s more, it’s fairly difficult to believe that a 30-year-old worksheet, which was originally developed in 1991, is a one-time “whoopsie” in judgement. After all, how many years has this worksheet been used at the school? For three decades, maybe? It’s entirely possible! (I posed this question to Principal Campbell and Superintendent Howard, both of whom did not respond to my request for comment.) The unfortunate event should, at the very least, lead to a full-scale, third-party review of all materials used within the district’s curriculum for any other instances of ableism, and perhaps even sensitivity training for faculty and staff at Paul G. Blazer. We’ll see.
For now, Riley and Kendall—both of whom are accomplished artists—hope that calling attention to the assignment on social media and launching a Change.org petition about the issue will help create actual shifts in the culture surrounding ableism at Blazer and within the larger Ashland community.
“We’ve had some pushback from people saying, ‘It's just a word. Everybody's human and makes mistakes. We all mess up.’ And I get it, but that doesn't excuse anybody from what's happening here,” says Kendall.
It’s unacceptable to put the mental and emotional health of students at risk by forcing them to encounter a discriminatory word in a mandatory assignment—at Blazer or any other Kentucky public school. If Eastern Kentucky counties want to keep brave, empathetic students like the Dixons in the region, much more significant, actionable steps toward inclusivity need to be taken.
Because if the Dixons have anything to say about it, this will never happen in another Blazer classroom again.
For the sake of transparency, I’m including the questions I posed to Principal Campbell and Superintendent Howard. If they decide to respond in the coming days, I will, of course, update the story accordingly:
1. How many years was this worksheet used? If this is unknown, why?
2. Do teachers undergo any sensitivity training for materials they teach, and is there a review process for materials (particularly those three decades old) before they are given to students?
3. What sort of follow up education or training is being provided for teachers in light of this event?
4. Has the school offered counseling or support to students who felt negatively impacted by the assignment?
5. Will the school be conducting a full review of all materials provided to students to ensure this isn't happening in other classrooms? If so, who will be conducting this review?
Additional Resources:
The Rights of Young People in Kentucky (ACLU of Kentucky)
How to Have a Conversation with Friends and Family About the R-Word (Spread the Word)
Pledge to Spread Inclusion (Spread the Word)