Rick Bowmer / AP
Amanda Darrow, director of youth, family and education programs at the Utah Pride Center, poses with books, including “The Bluest Eye,” by Toni Morrison, that have been the subject of complaints from parents in Salt Lake City on Dec. 16, 2021. The wave of book bannings around the country has reached a level not seen for decades.
Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023 | 2 a.m.
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Book bans have existed throughout history, but in 2022, librarians and educators across the country faced an unprecedented and highly organized assault on books in schools.
Book ban proponents used harassment and threats to bully and intimidate educators, support staff and administrators.
Extremists at school board meetings set an embarrassingly poor example as they shouted unfounded accusations that the existence of books with certain themes or passages were evidence that teachers and librarians were grooming their children for sexual predation and encouraging kids to engage in drugs, alcohol and prostitution.
Meanwhile, Republican politicians used the language of school safety to justify strict — yet entirely undefined — prohibitions on books and speech in the classroom, all the while refusing to do anything about the true threat to school safety: gun violence, which injured or killed more than 300 students on school property in 2022 alone.
In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott threatened criminal consequences for any school library that contained “pornographic” content. Abbott did not define the term pornographic, leaving teachers, administrators and librarians to wonder where law enforcement would draw the line.
Most of Shakespeare’s most notable works, including “Romeo and Juliette,” contain steamy sex scenes. The Greek classics from authors such as Aristotle, Socrates, and Aristophanes all discuss sex and masturbation. When it comes to marital bedroom relations, you can find vivid descriptions in “Dracula,” “Gone with the Wind” and “The Canterbury Tales.” Even the Bible has raunchy passages. It contains at least 29 different descriptions of sexual encounters that include rape, incest, prostitution and orgies. Presumably, under the Texas law, all of these books would be banned from schools, as would any book that references the lurid passages or parables.
Ron DeSantis, a GOP presidential hopeful and the governor of Florida, went even further than his Texas counterpart by ushering in his trademark “Don’t Say Gay” legislation. Before we receive more letters explaining that the bill doesn’t actually use the word “gay,” we know. We read it. It bans instruction and discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in the classroom for children under 10, without defining what it means to “discuss” or “instruct.”
The lack of definitions matters.
Imagine a 6-year-old — we’ll call him Timmy — telling a classmate — say, John — during a round of finger painting about how cool Timmy’s two moms are. Suddenly their teacher cuts them off to inform Timmy that “John can talk about his parents but it’s illegal for you, Timmy, to talk about your parents in school because John (or another classmate) might ask about why you have two moms instead of a mom and a dad, which is a prohibited discussion of sexual orientation.”
By failing to define terms, the bill effectively bans any acknowledgment of the existence of LGBTQ+ people and LGBTQ+ relationships or family structures — including in books. This effectively bans use of the word gay except in its most harmful form: as a derogatory insult.
Fortunately, we escaped bans on words, books or literary themes in our schools in Nevada. But that doesn’t mean we escaped the threats or intimidation.
In June, a library in Sparks hosted a drag queen story time. The free event provided a space for children whose parents voluntarily consented to their child’s participation to listen to a story about kindness and acceptance of people’s differences being read by a drag performer. (Drag is theatrical style of performing songs, dances, skits, acrobatics and comedy routines while dressed in exaggerated clothing and costumes typically associated with the opposite gender.)
While children and their parents learned about respect and tolerance inside the library, outside a group of protesters was led by armed members of the Proud Boys militia. Police monitored the situation until the protesters appeared to be dispersing. But after the police were gone, a protester approached the library wielding a long gun. Parents and librarians scrambled to move the children to a safe location within the library and no shots were fired. But according to eyewitnesses, children, parents and library staff were visibly shaken by the threat of the approaching gunman.
According to a recent poll, these types of protests and book bans are having an impact. Sixty-six percent of librarians across all grade levels have made an intentional choice to avoid purchasing a book because of concerns about content that acknowledged human sexuality. Approximately one-quarter of librarians have passed on a book because it contained LGBTQ characters or themes, underage drug or alcohol use, or discussions of self-harm or suicide.
Children need a safe and responsible space outside the home to seek information about issues they feel they can’t address with their parents. It’s in society’s interest to ensure such a space exists, especially given that not all parents are responsible or knowledgeable about some topics — or, in some cases, willing to act in their child’s best interests. Even well-intentioned parents can cause real harm by speaking with authority on issues with which they have little experience or expertise.
Parents and politicians alike do the next generation a disservice by shielding young people from content, curricula and conversations that grapple with complex topics like gender and sexuality, mental health and drug and alcohol abuse.
Children will inevitably grow up and live in a world in which LGBTQ+ people exist, drug and alcohol abuse occur, and mental health challenges are imminent. Preparing children to navigate that world and respond to temptations with age-appropriate materials that introduce language, concepts and themes is essential to their future success in a diverse society. Educators, librarians and school administrators have a role to play in that education, but only if parents and politicians allow them to.
2022 was the year we tried to ban books in America. Let’s make 2023 the year we embrace the transformative power of books to prepare our children for future success.
