University of Illinois assert that Persepolis offers a platform for students to question Western stereotypes and fear surrounding the Middle East. Another study that was done also showed that Persepolis has greatly impacted the thinking skills of middle school students who were taught it in their ELA classroom. Despite the images and easy-to-read text, Persepolis is also often taught at the high school level because high-school aged students would be able to take the information learned and thoroughly discuss it to enhance their literary skills. From writing about her life and the people in it, Satrapi's writing also denies the typical assumptions made by the world about Western Iranian women. Friere and Macedo believe that the way women and Iranian society in general are presented in the book can help students come to doubt their perceived sense of national insecurity when it comes to the Middle East. In 2019, the graphic novel was ranked 47th on The Guardian'''s list of the 100 best books of the 21st century. Censorship Despite the positive reviews, Persepolis faced some attempts at censorship in school districts across the United States. In March 2013, the Chicago Public Schools ordered copies of Persepolis to be removed from seventh-grade classrooms after Chicago Public Schools CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett determined that the book "contains graphic language and images that are not appropriate for general use". Upon hearing about the proposed ban, upperclassmen at Lane Tech High School in Chicago flocked to the library to check out Persepolis and organized demonstrations in protest. CPS reinstituted the book in school libraries and classrooms. In 2014, the book faced three different challenges across the United States, which led to its placement as #2 on the ALA's list of "Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2014". The first of these controversies occurred in Oregon's Three Rivers School District, where a parent insisted on the removal of the book from its high school libraries due to the "coarse language and scenes of torture". The book remained in libraries without any restriction after school board meetings to discuss this challenge. Another case of censorship arose in central Illinois' Ball-Chatham School District, where a student's parent stated that the book was inappropriate for the age group assigned. The parent also inquired into why Persepolis was assigned to the students to read on September 11. Despite this opposition, the school board unanimously voted to keep the book