An Idaho high school graduate performed a simple yet powerful act of protest by offering a banned book to the school district’s superintendent at her own graduation ceremony.
Annabelle Jenkins had put on her graduation gown on May 23 to mark the conclusion of her studies at the Idaho Fine Arts Academy. What only she and her parents knew was that one of the sleeves of her graduation gown was hiding a copy of The Handmaid’s Tale, which was one of the books that the school’s principal had removed from its library last December.
Highlights
- An Idaho high school graduate, Annabelle Jenkins, handed a banned book to the school district's superintendent at her graduation ceremony
- The teenage girl had a copy of The Handmaid’s Tale hidden in her graduation gown when she went up on stage
- When the superintendent refused to take the book, she left the novel at his feet and walked away
- A video of Annabelle's act went viral on TikTok, garnering over 24.6 million views
When her name was called out from among the 44 seniors getting their diplomas that day, the teenager walked on stage and stood before West Ada School District Superintendent Derek Bub and pulled the banned book from her sleeve. After quickly showing the audience the novel, she smiled and offered it to Derek, who refused to take it from her.
The youngster then placed it at his feet and walked off the stage without shaking his hand, creating a moment that has now been viewed millions of times online.
A video of Annabelle Jenkins' act of protest went viral on TikTok and racked up more than 24.6 million views
Image credits: West Ada School District
Image credits: West Ada School District
The teenager, who was tired of not having a say as a student about what books should be available in her library, said her intention was never to go viral. Nevertheless, she wanted to make a statement about the removal of books from student libraries, which has become a much-talked-about issue in the U.S. in recent years. PEN America, which tracks book bans in the country, stated on its website that it recorded 4,349 instances of book bans in fall 2023 (July 1 - December 31).
“I have never desired to go viral, but if I was ever going to, I’m glad that it is for something so deeply important to me,” Annabelle told the Idaho Statesman. “More than anything, I just want people to talk about it. I want to generate conversation.”
"This place means a lot to me and libraries in general, I realize these are the types of spaces I want to spend my life protecting and curating," she told KTVB.
The high school graduate presented her West Ada School District Superintendent with a copy of The Handmaid’s Tale and placed it at his feet when he refused to take it
Image credits: West Ada School District
Image credits: West Ada School District
Annabelle and her classmates were sorely disappointed when the graphic novel version of The Handmaid’s Tale, which meant a lot to them, was taken off the shelves of West Ada school libraries along with nine other books, including A Stolen Life by Jaycee Dugard, Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas, and Water for Elephants by Sarah Gruen.
“It is a book with a lot of heavy themes, and it has some very difficult scenes to get through. It does deal with a lot of sexual themes. I believe a word that I’ve heard tossed around about that book was ‘pornographic,’ which I very strongly disagree with,” the high school graduate said about the dystopian novel written by Margaret Atwood and Renee Nault. The book has also been turned into a hit series with the same title.
Months before her graduation, the youngster heard a teacher arguing with the school librarian over the same book.
The argument "was over the graphic novel The Handmaid's Tale, and I was just so shocked because I had never seen school staff behave that way in a school setting," she told the outlet.
"My main issue is the teacher [who] was contesting it had not read the book,” she added.
Moreover, the lack of the students’ involvement in the book removal process from libraries is one of the reasons that pushed her to perform the defiant act at her graduation ceremony.
The graphic novel version of The Handmaid’s Tale was 1 of 10 books removed from the shelves of West Ada school libraries last December
In addition to speaking out against the removal of the books in December, the high school alum had sent a letter to the district administration urging them to include students in the process. However, her request was turned down.
“From there, it was a whole school year of students advocating against the removal of different books and trying to protect our libraries,” she said in one of her interviews. “The district did not seem to care specifically about allowing students to be involved in the conversation at all.”
After she and her fellow classmates were “ignored,” Annabelle decided she did not want to walk across the stage to get her diploma and have to shake the superintendent's hand.
The newly minted-graduate had no idea that her video of the incident would blow up the way it did.
"I wake up in the morning to my dad shaking me and saying, 'Your TikTok has a million views,'" she recalled.
A spokesperson for the West Ada School District said the teen's gesture "unfortunately overshadowed the celebratory occasion"
Image credits: KTVB
Following her on-stage gesture, West Ada School District told the Idaho Statesman that it is committed to offering students a diverse range of novels in their libraries. However, Annabelle’s act “unfortunately overshadowed the celebratory occasion,” the district administration said.
“While we respect the right to voice concerns, it is important to maintain the focus on the achievements and hard work of our students during such significant milestones,” Spokesperson Niki Scheppers told the outlet.
Niki also said the Idaho Fine Arts Academy did not have a system in place to “determine which students at various grade levels could access specific books.”
Hence, their review of the graphic version of The Handmaid’s Tale led to its inclusion in the list of books to be removed. The “graphic imagery contained within the novel was not suitable for the West Ada School District student population,” the spokesperson added.
She also said the original novel of The Handmaid’s Tale can still be found in libraries.
Annabelle, who was home-schooled till high school, said she was practically raised in libraries and believes they are important “to the health of your community.”
“Throughout my life, I have really seen how versatile and important libraries are to the community,” she told the outlet. “It’s not only a place for self-exploration and learning. It’s also a place for connection and skill building.”
“I think it’s a really dangerous road to go down,” she added. “You don’t realize how amazing libraries are and how important they are to the health of your community until you’ve hurt them so badly.”
Netizens praised the "smart and brave young lady" for the way she stood up for what she believes in
