Read Across America (RAA) and Dr. Seuss have always been linked. RAA events typically involve children in red-and-white striped hats, listening to a Dr. Seuss classic.

In past years at the premier event in Washington, DC, local elementary students have heard Michelle Obama read The Cat in the Hat and the National Education Association (NEA) president recite Green Eggs and Ham. This year, however, they will listen to author Jesse Holland read an excerpt from his novel Black Panther: Who is the Black Panther?

The 2018 Read Across America theme is “Celebrating a Nation of Diverse Readers” and the NEA press release notes that the hundreds of fourth graders in attendance on Thursday March 1 will be wearing “a rainbow of colors.” NEA president Lily Eskelsen Garcia will be joined at the event by three authors of color–Holland, Kwame Alexander (The Crossover) and Gene Luen Yang (American Born Chinese). 

Along with Holland reading the excerpt from his book, Alexander and Yang will help the students develop their own haiku. The event is “to kick off” Read Across America Day, which is March 2. Eskelsen Garcia and the authors will also participate in a Facebook Live event at 1 p.m.

“It’s critical that all students see themselves represented in the popular culture,” Eskelsen García said in a statement. “During this year’s Read Across America and National Reading Month, our theme is ‘Celebrating a Nation of Diverse Readers,’ and we are emphasizing the importance of books that are telling children of color that they belong in the world and the world belongs to them. It can be a scary place out there right now for our students, but a book can transport them to a world that is safe, a world they feel they belong in, and a world in which they believe they can make a difference.”

The first Read Across America Day was March 2, 1998. It is no coincidence that date also happens to be Theodor Geisel’s birthday. When the NEA wanted to create a day to encourage children to read, it only made sense to pick the day Dr. Seuss was born. But a connection to the legendary children’s author no longer comes without criticism.

Allegations that The Cat in the Hat and other Seuss books and illustrations are racist have created an emotional debate around the author and RAA.  A September 2017 SLJ article “Is the Cat in the Hat Racist? Read Across America Shifts Away From Dr. Seuss and Toward Diverse Books” highlighted scholars who have analyzed Seuss’ books and political cartoons and identified racism in his illustrations and character development.  

Read Across America is a year-long program, but the highlight is Read Across America Week, which is typically centered around Dr. Seuss and his stories. It culminates with millions of students celebrating his March 2 birthday and Read Across America Day at elementary schools around the country.

This year is likely a turning point for the program and its annual events. The NEA has a contract with Seuss Enterprises through August 2018. They have not said if they will continue to use the images or connect the program to Dr. Seuss after that.

“This is really going to be a transitional year for us,” Steven Grant, an NEA spokesperson, who has managed the Read Across America program since 2005, told SLJ in that September 2017 story. “We’re going to be trying different things and moving in some different directions to see if that works.”

It may prove to be a difficult transition for educators who have had their popular Seuss-centric Read Across America week activities set for years. “The goal is to encourage the educator, because we can’t force him or her to do anything,” Grant said