Simon & Schuster’s Black History Book Accused of Plagiarism: Report

An “anti-racist” activist’s book on “black history for kids,” distributed by Simon & Schuster in March, has been accused of being “heavily plagiarized,” according to a report by National Review.

Excerpts from the book, Resistance Stories from Black History for Kids by Rann Miller, bear a striking resemblance to passages from news articles and books by other historians. Miller, who has experience teaching in K-12 schools and currently serves as a program director for a local school district, a professional development facilitator, and a public speaker, is the author of the book.

One example of the alleged plagiarism is when Miller describes ancient African civilizations. He states, “evidence of the oldest recognizable monarchy (government ruled by a single person) in human history, preceding the rise of the earliest Kemetic kings by several generations, has been discovered in objects from ancient Nubia.” This quote closely mirrors a passage from a 1979 New York Times article that reads, “Evidence of the oldest recognizable monarchy in human history, preceding the rise of the earliest Egyptian kings by several generations, has been discovered in artifacts from ancient Nubia in Africa.”

The book promotes key beliefs of critical race theory, including the notion that American society was “instituted by racist ideas and maintained by racist policies,” as reported by National Review. Miller, who was recently hired to help create a Black history and social justice course curriculum for high school students, expressed his desire for students to understand that the United States is a white settler colonized state built on racial capitalism that primarily benefits people of European descent.

Despite the allegations, Simon & Schuster has not responded to inquiries from National Review regarding the book, which is still featured on the publishing company’s website.

Last year, Princeton University faced similar accusations of plagiarism against one of its progressive professors, Kevin Kruse. However, the university took no action after being made aware of the evidence, as reported by the Washington Free Beacon.