Mark --

Thanks for the alert.  It's nice to know that our officials are still as
chuckledheaded as they were in Twain's day.  If he were alive now he'd
surely get a kick out of this latest development.

It's understandable that people who don't take the trouble to read the book
carefully might think "Huckleberry Finn" is some sort of racist tract.  And
of course, if you've got a chip on your shoulder before you even read the
first page, then reading the book is not likely to change your mind.

I've summarized some of the arguments on the other side in a short article
titled "Is 'Huck Finn' Racist?" which I've posted on the Internet at
http://salwen.com/mtrace.html.  Please feel free to make use of it if you're
planning any local anti-censorship action; some of the points and quotes
there might be helpful.

Good luck!

Peter Salwen