Authors and Illustrators of LGBTQ Picture Books at Center of Supreme Court Case Speak Out

Eighteen authors and illustrators whose LGBTQ-inclusive picture books are at the heart of an upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case issued a statement today defending their work and reminding us that all children benefit from the freedom to read.

The case began when Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland added a number of optional, LGBTQ-inclusive picture books to its supplemental curriculum after they went through the standard evaluation process. A group of parents in the county brought a lawsuit against MCPS, claiming that it was a violation of the parents’ religious freedom not to let them opt out their children before the books were read in the classroom.

A federal district court denied the parents a preliminary injunction that would have temporarily required the district to let them opt out their children. The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that decision last May in a 2-1 ruling. The plaintiffs then asked the Supreme Court to take the case, Mahmoud v. Taylor, which it agreed to do. (For more details on the case and how similar ones in the past have turned out, see my January post.)

Here is the whole statement from the authors and illustrators of the books mentioned by the plaintiffs. It’s worth reading in full. (Highlights are mine.)

On January 17, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States announced that it will hear Mahmoud v. Taylor, a case brought by a group of parents from Montgomery County, Maryland, against the Board of Education for the County school district. The case revolves around the district’s decision to include certain books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes in the elementary school curriculum. The parents argue that their religious rights are being violated by not being able to opt their children out of class when such books are to be used. We, as authors and illustrators of the books, strongly support the school district and its decision to include our books in the curriculum.

We have been told about children hugging our books and carrying them everywhere they go.

We created our books with love and care. Children and their parents need to see families like their own in books. We have all had the experience of meeting a child and their family who are delighted by our books. We have been told about children hugging our books and carrying them everywhere they go. We have heard emotional stories from adults who wish they had had our books when they were growing up. These were the books we ourselves needed when we were young.

We stand in support of the Montgomery County School District. We oppose censoring or segregating books, like ours, that feature LGBTQ+ people. All families deserve to be seen and heard. To act otherwise is harmful and sends a devastating message to students: that their lives and families are so offensive and dangerous that they can’t even be discussed in school.

Specifically targeting books about one group of families and children is discriminatory and leaves this group vulnerable to mistreatment and bullying. A ruling in favor of the plaintiffs in this case would undermine teachers in their efforts to create safe, inclusive classrooms where all children learn to treat each other with respect and kindness. Research shows that representation is linked to better educational outcomes.

Children need to know that there are other people like them in the world, that they aren’t alone, that their hopes and fears are shared by others.

Every child deserves the freedom to read. The freedom to read leads to the freedom to learn. Children need to know that there are other people like them in the world, that they aren’t alone, that their hopes and fears are shared by others. And they need the freedom to read about different people with different views, from diverse ethnic backgrounds and abilities. The freedom to read means that children are free to have their own thoughts and beliefs and to make their own choices. It helps prepare them to be good citizens, to navigate and succeed in a complex and diverse world.

Our most basic duty as members of society is to respect and care for each other, no matter how similar or different we may be. Children want to see themselves in books; all children need to see many different kinds of people in books. 

• Sarah Brannen, author of Uncle Bobby’s Wedding
• Chris Case, illustrator of Jacob’s Room to Choose
• Carolyn Choi, author of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
• LaToya Council, author of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
• Daniel Haack, author of Prince & Knight
• Ian Hoffman, author of Jacob’s Room to Choose
• Sarah Hoffman, author of Jacob’s Room to Choose
• Stevie Lewis, illustrator of Prince & Knight
• Katherine Locke, author of What Are Your Words?
• Julie McLaughlin, illustrator of Pride Puppy
• DeShanna Neal, author of My Rainbow
• Trinity Neal, author of My Rainbow
• Andy Passchier, illustrator of What Are Your Words?
• Jodie Patterson, author of Born Ready: The True Story of a Boy Named Penelope
• Chelsea Johnson Rabb, author of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
• Ashley Seil Smith, illustrator of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
• Robin Stevenson, author of Pride Puppy
• Charlotte Sullivan Wild, author of Love, Violet

I have linked the titles to the reviews of each in my Database of LGBTQ Family Books, so you can learn more about them; in brief, they’re all perfectly age-appropriate books of good literary and artistic quality.

I’ll also reiterate a couple of thoughts from my earlier post on the case: Some might feel that letting parents opt out their children is a better solution than outright bans of LGBTQ-inclusive books (such as the “Don’t Say Gay/LGBTQ” laws in Florida, Ohio, and other states). Perhaps—but only to a point. The administrative burden of having to notify parents, collect their responses, answer any questions they may have about the material, and determine what the opted-out students will do during class time when the LGBTQ books are read may dissuade schools from including LGBTQ books in the first place. That’s still effectively censorship—and as the statement above notes, sends a harmful message to children. It’s also a small and slippery step between regulating and restricting LGBTQ-inclusive books and restricting what children say about themselves and their families.

Thanks to all of the creators above for standing up not only in support of their books, but for fundamental freedoms.

If you want to learn more about the epidemic of book banning and censorship in the U.S. right now, I recommend:

• PEN America’s “Banned in the USA: Beyond the Shelves” analysis of book bans in public schools nationwide;
• The American Library Association’s 2024 Preliminary Book Ban Data, which looks at censorship attempts in public, school, and academic libraries;
• The National Coalition Against Censorship’s Book Challenge Resource Center;
• Unite Against Book Bans, a good starting point for taking action.