“We have so many outstanding books for children today there is no need to continue to publish books that are now inappropriate. “I absolutely think this is a commitment to a better, more just, and inclusive world of children’s literature,” Ann Neely, professor of children’s literature at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, said. Seuss Enterprises' catalog represents and supports all communities and families.” The books that will no longer be published are: “If I Ran the Zoo,” “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” 'McElligot’s Pool,' 'On Beyond Zebra!,' 'Scrambled Eggs Super!,' and 'The Cat’s Quizzer.' The business said it came to the decision last year after months of discussion and hailed the move as “part of our commitment and our broader plan to ensure Dr. Seuss - used his incredible talent to instill in his most impressionable readers universal values we all hold dear.' Then-President Barack Obama lauded the author in 2016, saying, 'Theodor Seuss Geisel - or Dr. While Seuss’ body of work has been called “dehumanizing and degrading” to Black, Indigenous, Jewish and Muslim people, and people of color, according to the survey, he is praised for promoting universal values in children. “If I Ran the Zoo” also features two men from Africa who are shirtless, shoeless and wearing grass skirts while holding an exotic animal. In “If I Ran the Zoo,” a white boy holds a large gun while standing on the heads of three Asian men.

In “And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street,” a white man is shown holding a whip above a man of color and the elephant he's riding on. Portrayal of and references to Black characters relied heavily on anti-Blackness and images of white superiority, the study found. A 2019 survey of Seuss’ works found that just 2 percent of human characters were people of color - 98 percent were white.

Dr seuss colors feelings