I find this outrageous.
Here's a copy of a letter I wrote to the school board communication director who chose to pull this book--I chose not to post the email since I had to dig for it.
Dear Mr. Allen
I just stumbled across the news story (from London, UK) regarding the county school board's decision to pull the unabridged Diary of Anne Frank, one of the most poignant, heartwrenching, and significant accounts of a young Jewish life under the Nazi regime. The news story was short, but it is my understanding that the decision was based on a parent's discomfort with sexual references. The decision to replace the book with a cleaned-up-version is as appalling as the decision to remove it in the first place--on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, no less....
Not only is this censorship, not only is this a horribly impetuous reaction to one parent who is clearly afraid to acknowledge the world as it is--but it is an egregious slap in the face to the millions of people who, directly or via their ancestors, were directly affected by one of the most horrific episodes in human history.
I note that one factor in pulling the book was the desire to quietly acknowledge the wish of one (or maybe a few) individuals. Instead, your decision has gone far beyond that.
If it is of such paramount concern in your school district that parents and children not be offended by the reading material in your library, would it be too complicated to, say, require a permission slip? Or have the book available on request behind the circulation desk?
Please take a deep breath and reconsider this decision--because as it stands, it is utterly appalling.