Canonical texts used in ELA classrooms often support a stereotypical view of Blackness. One such work is To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (1960). I researched peer-reviewed literature surrounding To Kill a Mockingbird. My findings indicated that the novel is heavily criticized for reinforcing the deficit Black narrative while supporting a White supremist ideology. Drawing on an analysis of peer-reviewed articles, my own experience as a student and secondary education practitioner, and a review of the curriculum presented in four Pennsylvania school districts, I discovered that an exclusively deficit narrative is damaging to all students but is particularly damaging to Black students. I identify five negative consequences that can occur: a negative self-image on the part of Black students; the devaluation of Black (male) lives; the perpetuation of a distorted Eurocentric historical narrative; the enabling of anti-Blackness and the intrinsic reinforcement of White supremacy. I then examine To Kill a Mockingbird in the lens of criteria espoused by the “DuVernay Test” (Tucker-Smith, 2022), which assesses Black representation in the film industry and found that the novel fails on all levels while it can facilitate the negative outcomes previously identified. I counter these negative outcomes by identifying asset-framing practices utilized in Black schools and historically Black colleges and universities which can be implemented at the PK-12 levels. I conclude by encouraging educators to refrain from teaching To Kill a Mockingbird or to approach the novel from a Black-affirming perspective.