Huckleberry Finn loses wording due to budget cuts

The New South, an Alabama publisher, is looking to replace the n-word with the word slave to tone down the language of Huck Finn.  Diane Ravitch, in her Jan 19 blog, uses a terrible argument in relating Huckleberry Finn to the HBO show, The Wire.  I think she is saying our current culture is full of vulgarity and we permit it, whereas we are very quick to censor a classic for the language it uses.  I guess she does not know the difference between pay per view and a book that is used to teach children about the past and is considered a classic in literature.  Strange argument she has here.  She does redeem herself a bit in her final argument by saying watered down literature will not allow students to think on their own and form opinions.  I do agree with her but, for different reasons.  I do not care for controversy but, I think reality trumps keeping things PC.  If the parents or teachers do not understand that the use of the n-word in Huck's time was commonly used in a bit of a different context than it is used on The Wire then I suppose the kids will not either.  What is worse, when we start censoring, I fear it will not stop.  Pretty soon we will have Texas made history books, and Kansas "created" science.