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Kanawha County Textbook Controversy

Last updated on 12 Jun 2025 by Stan Bumgardner

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In summer and fall 1974, the most violent protest over public school textbooks in our nation’s history erupted in Kanawha County. The disagreement stemmed from the selection of textbooks for the 46,000 students attending the county’s 124 public schools. By the time the dispute died down in early 1975, the county had been split into separate camps. In addition, various acts of violence had attracted negative national attention to West Virginia. Today, the textbook controversy is recognized as an important moment in the escalating culture wars of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

  • A Battle of Cultures

    In April 1974, the Kanawha County Board of Education voted to approve 325 new language arts books for schools. Some of the books included more diverse voices and stories than in the past. After the vote, board member Alice Moore strongly objected ...

  • The Battle Moves to the Churches

    The school board delayed buying the new books to give time for more discussion. Alice Moore’s strong opinions started a major anti-textbook movement. By July and August, people were deeply divided. Most anti-textbook protesters lived in rural area...

  • Support for the Books

    Even though they weren’t as loud or public, many people in Kanawha County supported the new textbooks. A lot of teachers believed that choosing what to teach and which books to use should be up to educators, not the public. One of the strongest vo...

  • "Shut down the schools!"

    In August, the ministers who wanted the textbooks removed started a campaign to “shut down the schools.” When school started on September 3, about 20% fewer students showed up because many parents kept their kids home. Some did this because they w...

  • The Miners Walk Out

    Things moved quickly during the first week of September. To support the protesters, 3,500 coal miners went on an unauthorized wildcat strike. The strike spread fast, closing down many mines in southern West Virginia and eastern Kentucky. The miner...

  • Students Take a Stand

    To try and ease tensions, school superintendent Kenneth Underwood closed schools for a few days. On September 12, the school board temporarily removed all the new books and created a committee of 18 citizens to review them. But the compromise didn...

  • Violence

    Kanawha County became the center of national news as the protests turned violent. In October, frustrated by no progress, some angry anti-textbook protesters tried to close schools by force, including Midway Elementary (pictured). Several schools w...

  • Compromise and More Frustration

    The protests reached their peak at a big meeting on November 8 at the Charleston Civic Center, which was supposed to hold thousands of people. But fewer than 100 showed up because many were worried about violence. At the meeting, the school board ...

  • Alice Moore's Guidelines

    A few weeks after the board meeting, the protesters won when the board agreed to follow Moore’s rules for choosing future textbooks. These rules banned books that looked too much into family life, taught racial hatred, attacked religious or ethnic...

  • The End of the Controversy

    The protests went on into 1975, made worse by extremist groups like the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). The protests and violence finally ended when Rev. Marvin Horan (seen here behind KKK leader Dale Reusch at a rally on the state capitol steps) was put on t...

  • Rise of the Religious Right

    Even though the protests ended, this event became an important moment in the rise of the religious right in America. One protester said the textbook controversy was like the “shot heard ’round the world” that started the culture wars of the late 1...