Racism row: Dr Seuss museum pulls mural after ‘Chinaman’ art offends three authors
A Massachusetts museum dedicated to Dr Seuss says it will replace a mural featuring a Chinese character from one of his books
A real estate developer and his partner have offered to buy a mural featuring a Chinese character from a Dr Seuss book after it was deemed offensive.
The mural inside the Amazing World of Dr Seuss Museum in Massachusetts features illustrations from the author’s first children’s book And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street.
The museum, which is in the author Theodor Seuss Geisel’s hometown of Springfield, said Thursday the mural would be replaced after three children’s authors said it contains a “jarring racial stereotype”.
The Republican reported that Chinese-American developer Andy Yee and businessman Peter Picknelly announced Saturday they were willing to buy the mural if it was removed.
Picknelly called the criticism “political correctness gone insane”.
The authors – including Mo Willems, the Caldecott-winning writer and illustrator behind the popular Pigeon and Knuffle Bunny books – issued a joint letter Thursday saying they were skipping the upcoming Children’s Literature Festival in Springfield, Massachusetts.