LGBTQ Parenting Roundup: Year-End Edition
One last roundup before 2022 winds to a close! Here are some of the stories of LGBTQ parents and our kids that I haven’t covered already.
banned books
“Exceptionally Challenging”: A 2022 Year in Review for LGBTQ Families
What were the major advances—and setbacks—for LGBTQ families in 2022? I asked several leading experts to share their thoughts, and all agreed there had been many obstacles—but also reasons for hope.
“Banned Together” Auction Is Raising Funds to Send LGBTQ-Inclusive Books to Schools
Non-profit Pride and Less Prejudice, which has donated over 7,500 LGBTQ-inclusive picture books to elementary school classrooms in the U.S. and Canada since its founding in 2019, is holding a virtual auction through this weekend so they can send 800 more. Check out some of the amazing offerings!
Renewing the Fight Against Book Banning
This week marks Banned Books Week, the American Library Association’s (ALA’s) annual celebration of the freedom to read—but this year feels more like a call to action than a celebration. Book bans and other attempts at censorship, largely targeting the LGBTQ and other marginalized communities, are raging across the country. Here’s what’s happening, how others are fighting back, and how you can help.
The LGBTQ-Inclusive Picture Books That Are Being Targeted for Bans
It’s Banned Books Week, during a year that has seen record numbers of bans and challenges. Let’s kick things off by looking at some of the picture books that have been targeted recently for being LGBTQ inclusive.
Fighting Back Against the Attacks on Diverse and Inclusive Books
Preschooler Heather is no stranger to opposition. Lesléa Newman’s 1989 Heather Has Two Mommies, the first picture book to depict happily coupled same-sex parents and their child, faced opprobrium from conservatives since shortly after it was published. Now, it is one of a record number of books for children and teens, largely about people with marginalized identities, that are under attack across the country.
700+ Authors, Bookstores, Publishers, and Organizations Condemn School Book Bans
Attempts to ban children’s and young adult books with characters who are LGBTQ or people of color are sadly nothing new. Such efforts have risen sharply this year, however, and more than 700 organizations and individuals have signed a statement condemning such attacks on children’s education.
5 Ways to Celebrate Banned Books Week 2021
It’s Banned Books Week, the annual event celebrating the freedom to read! LGBTQ-inclusive children’s books are among those most frequently banned, along with books that have themes of race and racial justice. Here are five things you can do now to celebrate and support banned books.
Celebrate with a Banned LGBTQ Book This Week
It’s Banned Books Week, the annual event from the American Library Association (ALA) that “draws national attention to the harms of censorship.” This year, the ALA’s Top Ten Most Frequently Challenged Books list is once again full of books with LGBTQ content.
Why Aren’t More LGBTQ-Inclusive Books for Kids Banned?
This week marks not only the start of fall, but also Banned Books Week, the annual celebration of the freedom to read. LGBTQ-inclusive books for children and young adults are often among those challenged by parents or library patrons — but many have escaped attempts to ban or restrict them. Is this good news or bad?