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Books featuring LGBT+ content are once again dominating the rankings of the most-banned books – with two trans kids’ books coming top.
The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom collates an annual list of the most commonly banned and challenged books at libraries across the US, which has long shone a light on the ongoing censorship faced by authors who address LGBT+ themes.
This year’s list is no different, with a staggering eight of the top 10 books in the list targeted over LGBT+ content — the fourth consecutive year that queer books have made up more than half the list.
LGBT+ books continue to dominate the banned list
Topping the list is the novel George by Alex Gino, which was “challenged, banned, restricted, and hidden” in libraries across the country because it features a transgender character.
The second-placed book, Beyond Magenta by Susan Kuklin, is based on interviews with six transgender young adults. In third place is A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Jill Twiss, which features a gay rabbit — and was produced for John Oliver’s topical TV show Last Week Tonight.
Also making the list are gay fairytale Prince & Knight, trans teen Jazz Jennings’ book I Am Jazz, Raina Telgemeier’s queer graphic novel Drama, and inclusive sex education resource Sex is a Funny Word.
The only non-LGBT+ books to make the list are The Handmaid’s Tale and Harry Potter — the latter of which does not contain any actual visible LGBT+ representation but is nonetheless reviled by evangelicals for its depiction of witchcraft.
American Library Association says LGBT+ books ‘misrepresented as pornographic’.
The American Library Association said: “Challenges to library materials and programs addressing issues of concern to those in the LGBTQIA+ communities continued unabated in 2019, with a rising number of coordinated, organised challenges to books, programs, speakers, and other library resources that address LGBTQIA+ issues and themes.
“A notable feature of these challenges is an effort to frame any material with LGBTQIA+ themes or characters as inherently pornographic or unsuitable for minors, even when the materials are intended for children and families and they are age and developmentally appropriate.
“For example, a pastor in Upshur, West Virginia, challenged the children’s picture book Prince & Knight, claiming that the fractured fairy tale ‘is a deliberate attempt to indoctrinate young children, especially boys, into the LGBTQA lifestyle.’
“Similarly, an organised group in Loudoun County, Virginia, protested the addition of diverse children’s and young adult books addressing LGBTQIA+ themes and characters to classroom libraries, claiming that the books advance a ‘political agenda’ endorsed by the LGBTQIA+ community.”
The ALA noted that “organised groups” with “conservative Christian beliefs about gender and sexual identity” have continued to protest and disrupt Drag Queen Story Hour events held in libraries, with more than 30 such challenges to Drag Queen Story Hours and other Pride events.
Cyndi Lauper, Troye Sivan, Todrick Hall, Rufus Wainwright, Kim Petras, Allie X and more artists are set to appear on “Stonewall Gives Back!” A Live-streaming Concert For The LGBTQ nightlife community.
The concert will be hosted by “RuPaul’s Drag Race” judge Michelle Visage and Tyler Oakley. Guest and performers at the event will include Alan Cumming, Allie X, Betty Who, Carlie Hanson, Darren Hayes, Dave Mizzoni, Greyson Chance, Issac Dunbar, John Cameron Mitchell, Kim Petras, Leland, Lorna Luft, Matt Rogers, MUNA, Nina West, Our Lady J, Pabllo Vittar, Peppermint, Rufus Wainwright, Todrick Hall, VINCINT and Troye Sivan. Lauper will be giving a special performance.
“The Stonewall Inn in New York City has, for decades, served as a beacon of hope in the LGBTQ+ community,” said World of Wonder co-founders Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey. “World of Wonder similarly strives to build opportunities and access for the community, while standing beside them and The Stonewall Inn in the struggle for equality. In that same spirit, we are thrilled to partner for this one-night-only concert to offer help and support to the LGBTQ+ community during this difficult time.”
The event is being executive produced by Erich Bergen, who recently produced The Rosie O’Donnell Show fundraising event as well as the “Saturday Night Seder” streaming event which raised $2.9 Million. “I think this pandemic has made it even more clear just how vulnerable some of our communities actually are,” said Bergen. “We are coming together to respond to this crisis in a collaborative way, through music, which is the great unifier.”
Co-Producer and Golden Globe nominated songwriter and producer Brett McLaughlin adds, “So many careers are built and sustained by the support of the LGBT nightlife community. It’s our turn and duty to support them during this time of need. I’m so grateful that many of my friends jumped at the chance to give back when asked. This is going to be an incredibly special evening.”
“Stonewall Gives Back!” will live-stream Thursday, April 23rd at 8PM ET/7 CT on World of Wonder’s YouTube Channel. All proceeds from the benefit concert will go to a fund where industry professionals can apply for a grant.
When we were four, many of us daydreamed about being a ballerina, astronaut or magician. But, mostly, we were clueless about what we’d be when we grew up.
That wasn’t the case with Thomas (a.k.a. Tomie) dePaola, the acclaimed, gay children’s author and illustrator, who died at age 85 in Lebanon, N.H., from complications from surgery after a fall. DePaola, whose award-winning work was beloved by children and adults, wrote and illustrated more than 270 books. If you’ve been spellbound by magical grandmas; bullied; eagerly awaited the arrival of a new baby brother or sister; or frightened by news that adults wouldn’t explain to you – you’ve found or will find a beautiful, comforting home in dePaola’s books.
DePaola knew what his life’s work would be before he started kindergarten. In an interview with readingrockets.org, he said, “I said, ‘Yes, I’m going to be an artist, and I’m going to write stories and draw pictures for books…I never, ever thought of considering any other profession.’”
From then on, dePaola never looked back. In second grade, dePaola told his art teacher “real artists don’t copy,” dePaola wrote in his series of memoirs about growing up in Meriden, Conn.
The teacher was so pleased with the picture the seven-year-old dePaola drew of her that she asked if she could keep it. “‘I told her, ‘Oh, no, no, no. I have to keep it. I might be able to sell it someday,’” he told readingrockets.org.
DePaola’s stories were often inspired by his memories of his family and childhood. “I’ve discovered that children most respond to books based on my own life,” he told The New York Times.
DePaola grew up in an Italian and Irish, Roman Catholic family. His early childhood was filled with Sunday dinners with his grandparents, dancing school recitals (he loved to dance like Fred Astaire!), Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the first years of World War II.
“Strega Nona,” one of his most beloved works is set in Calabria in Italy where his grandparents were from. It features a “grandma witch” who works magic with a pasta pot. DePaola received the distinguished Caldecott Medal for the book, which was banned by some libraries for daring to expose the young to magic.
Today, though much improvement is still needed in LGBTQ representation, a variety of children’s books — from “Heather Has Two Mommies” to “I Am Jazz” to “Harriet Gets Carried Away” — feature queer characters. This wasn’t so for kids’ book authors and illustrators of dePaola’s generation. Most children’s book writers couldn’t be openly queer then. “If it became known you were gay, you’d have a big red ‘G’ on your chest,” dePaola told T: The New York Times Style Magazine in 2019, “and schools wouldn’t buy your books anymore.”
DePaola’s work isn’t explicitly gay. Yet his picture books and chapter books have a particular resonance for queer readers. Though he didn’t come out until late in his life, his experience of being gay is reflected in some of his most seminal books.
“I was called a sissy in my young life,” dePaola said in a 1999 interview with the Times, “but instead of internalizing these painful experiences, I externalize them in my work.”
As a queer reader, I feel seen and heard as I read dePaola’s books. DePaola’s “Oliver Button Is a Sissy,” released in 1979, is the story of a young boy who’s bullied because he doesn’t like sports and wants to dance and dress in costume. It never says the word “gay,” but it’s queer quotient can’t be missed.
In his memoirs, dePaola writes of being a scared seven-year-old when Pearl Harbor was attacked and the United States entered World War II. He only knew that, as his mom said, “things will never be the same.”
Things won’t be the same after COVID-19. Thank you, Tomie dePaola for comforting us during our Pearl Harbor. R.I.P.
Women who lived radical, unflinchingly queer lifestyles played an essential role in Ireland’s Easter Rising of 1916, but most later had their commitment to independence erased. A new book tries to change that.
These women’s identities are explored in a new book by Niall O’Dowd. A New Ireland looks at how Ireland went from being one of the most conservative countries in Europe to one of the most socially liberal, examining social change over the last century and delving into the formative 1916 Rising.ADVERTISING
That year, Irish revolutionaries took to the streets of Dublin and seized important buildings in an armed uprising in protest against British rule. Pádraig Pearse, one of the leaders of the Rising, stood on the steps of the General Post Office (GPO) on O’Connell Street and read the Irish proclamation, which declared Ireland to be an independent state.
The Rising was ultimately quelled by British forces and many of its leaders were subsequently executed. Despite this, it was a formative moment that helped set in motion a campaign for freedom that culminated in the formation of the Irish Free State in 1922.
Many of the male revolutionaries who fought for Irish independence are well-remembered, but the role of women was largely forgotten. Among these women were lesbians who lived radical, unflinchingly queer lifestyles, as detailed in O’Dowd’s new book.
A lesbian couple volunteered in the Easter Rising, where they offered care to the wounded.
In an excerpt published by IrishCentral, O’Dowd details the lives of the queer women who later had their roles in the Easter Rising all but erased
He quotes historian Mary McAuliffe, who named Elizabeth O’Farrell as one of these revolutionary women in an interview with the Dublin Inquirer. O’Farrell and her partner Julia Grennan were both nurses and they volunteered in the GPO on O’Connell Street in Dublin during the Rising.
“They cared for the wounded, including James Connolly (the founder of the Irish Citizen Army),” McAuliffe said.
O’Farrell was ultimately tasked with carrying the surrender flag when the Irish revolutionaries realised that they were going to be defeated.
Elizabeth O’Farrell was literally erased.
“After days of fighting, the rebels moved to Moore Street, where Pearse decided to surrender,” McAuliffe said.
“When Elizabeth was going to bring out the surrender flag, Julia Grennan talks about the fact that she was terrified and anxious watching her step out onto Moore Street, where there were bullets whizzing around.
O’Farrell survived that moment, but her legacy was subsequently erased. She was famously airbrushed out of a photograph of 1916 commander Pádraig Pearse surrendering to the British Army — but whoever did so didn’t do a great job.
Her boots remained in the photograph, and the incident has become symbolic for the wider erasure of women and queer people from major historic events.
O’Farrell might have been erased from history, but that did not stop her from living a queer lifestyle. After the Rising she spent the rest of her life with Grennan, and when they died they were buried together in Glasnevin Cemetery. Their gravestone reads: “Elizabeth O’Farrell… And her faithful comrade and lifelong friend Sheila [Julia] Grennan.”
O’Garrell and Grennan were not the only queer women to play their part in the Easter Rising. 74 women in total fought for Irish independence in 1916, and there were at least two other queer women among their ranks.
Kathleen Lynn and Madeleine Ffrench-Mullan exchanged love letters following the 1916 Rising.
Dr Kathleen Lynn, a member of the Irish Citizen Army, served as Chief Medical Officer in the GPO and was also a notable suffragette. When she was arrested she described herself as “a Red Cross doctor and a belligerent,” according to O’Dowd.
She was imprisoned in Kilmainham Gaol alongside other women such as Constance Markievicz, the best-known woman of the Rising, and Madeleine Ffrench-Mullan.
McAuliffe said Dr Lynn and Ffrench-Mullan passed love letters to each other, and when they were released from prison they lived together for the rest of their lives.
Ireland was not a welcoming place for women and LGBT+ people both before and after independence, so it is perhaps no surprise that so many had their roles in the fight for independence erased. But without them, Ireland may never have won its freedom.
Five years after the Easter Rising, the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed giving independence to 26 counties in Ireland. Those counties became known as the Irish Free State, and would later become the Republic of Ireland. The revolutionary period that led to that independence is among the most important in Irish history — but it is only in recent years that the role played by women has been remembered.
Frameline Executive Director James Woolley announced the postponement of the Frameline44 San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival.
Originally set to take place June 18-28, 2020, the film festival is now scheduled to take place in Fall 2020. In addition, Frameline will be expanding film offerings throughout the year and is working on innovative opportunities to still celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month in June.
“During this challenging and uncertain time, organizations have to make tough decisions about whether or not to proceed with planned events,” said San Francisco Mayor London N. Breed. “While it isn’t an easy decision to postpone, I’m glad that Frameline is committed to finding ways to continue supporting filmmakers and artists who offer diverse points of view and share their stories of overcoming obstacles.”
“Since its inception in 1977, Frameline has welcomed audiences to celebrate the power of queer cinema alongside Pride celebrations in the month of June. While Pride month remains the spiritual home of the festival, we look forward to bringing the community together at a later date, to connect with the most vibrant and diverse LGBTQ+ storytellers in film,” said Woolley. “The safety of our beloved audience, staff, filmmakers and community partners must come first.”
Frameline2020 Fund Frameline has also launched the Frameline2020 Fund, with a goal of raising $250,000. With the unprecedented emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, Frameline is faced with a rapid reduction in cash flow. From the beginning of March, usually one of the highest earning months of the year, income has been interrupted and delayed. With the postponement of the Festival to Fall, Frameline will not likely see a return of stable income for months. Considerable measures to cut expenses have been taken during this time, but individual donor support is needed in order for Frameline to provide valuable programs and services as well as continue paying staff. Your donation to the Frameline2020 Fund is vital to our efforts in continuing to support filmmakers and produce our highly anticipated 2020 Festival. Please consider giving a tax-fee donatation below!
Grab the remote, set your DVR or queue up your streaming service of choice! GLAAD is bringing you the LGBTQ highlights on TV this week. Check back every Sunday for up-to-date coverage in LGBTQ-inclusive programming on TV.
The series finale of The Magicians airs on Wednesday night. The fantasy show is ending on its fifth season, wrapping up the stories of young people with extraordinary abilities in the magical world of Fillory, including queer fan-favorite character Eliot. The Magicians: Wednesday, 10pm on Syfy.
The second half of the final season of ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder will premiere Thursday night. With an ensemble full of queer characters, the final six episodes will conclude the series. In Thursday’s episode, Annalise’s disappearance is exposed; Bonnie discloses a secret about Tegan; Gabriel becomes a murder suspect. How to Get Away with Murder: Thursday, 10pm on ABC.
We may have to stay home, but our minds can soar to new worlds when you order books through copperfieldsbooks.com.
Our website offers an extensive array of books that we will ship directly to your home, so you can stay home & shop local. Visit our webpage and click “Shop Books” to browse dozens of genres you and your family will love!
In addition, we’ve reduced our shipping prices, making it easier to support your local independent bookstore.
I hope you are all safe and warm, and finding ways to keep yourselves entertained. As you know, OCA has put all of its activities on hold for the duration of the County’s shelter-in-place order. So far, we have rescheduled all ticketed events through May, and will resume small classes and group meetings as soon as the authorities deem it safe to do so. We’ll all miss getting together for the Fool’s Parade, now cancelled as well, but we look forward to lots of clever foolishness in 2021. In the meantime, there is an abundance of art and music being shared online, including free virtual tours of museums and galleries around the world, free streaming concerts, and more.
Below you’ll find links to websites and video recordings of some of our performers who’ve been rescheduled this season. You can use the links to enjoy a “couch tour” of live and recorded performances while we keep our safe distances.
We’re also sharing below some of the incredible artwork in our “She Persisted” exhibit, honoring the achievements of women throughout time.
We hope you enjoy the artwork and music, and that you will plan to see some of these wonderful performers later this year at OCA.
Even though our activities are on hold, OCA’s overhead expenses continue to accrue. With no event revenue we are facing challenges with our financial commitments including the upcoming property tax bill. If you are able, this is a great time to make a donation to OCA and show your support for our community venue. You can make a secure contribution online with this link.
Your support for OCA is greatly appreciated and will help ensure that we can continue bringing quality artistic and musical programs to West County.
We’ll update you again soon, and remain hopeful that our vigilance with social distancing is effective in suppressing the spread of COVID19. As always, feel free to reach out if you have any questions, comments or concerns.
I hope you enjoy the images from our exhibit, and use some of the links below to lift your spirits, take a break from the news media, and enjoy a musical or artistic interlude. You’ll be glad you did! Sincerely,
Tina MarchettiExecutive DirectorOccidental Center for the Arts[email protected] West County’s Arts and Entertainment Hub
“She Persisted” Art ExhibitionScroll down to see more images from the exhibit.
“Honoring Jane Lathrop Stanford” by Lesley Pickford. Oil on Canvas, $600.“Sarah Grimske Suffragette” by Johanna Regan. Oil on Canvas, $600.
Livestream Concert: Dirty CelloThursday, March 26th at 8 PM
Join Rebecca Roudman and crew for a live performance – direct to your living room! Brought to you via Bandsintown. Click here to RSVP. Rebecca’s Klezmer band SF Yiddish Combois currently being rescheduled at OCA. Check out more of their great music on their website.
Sarah Baker & FriendsSoul Blues with a Blues Rock Twist Check out videos from Sarah’s new album “Baker’s Dozen” on Sarah’s YouTube channel. Sarah’s performance at OCA is currently being rescheduled.
Mariah Parker’s Indo Latin Jazz Ensemble This supergroup of Bay Area musicians includes Paul McCandless, Matthew Montfort, Brian Rice, Kash Killion, Ian Dogole, Duru Demetrius, Debopriyo Sankar and Fred Randolph. Check out the ensemble and other great performances by Mariah on herYouTube channel. Mariah and friends have been rescheduled to perform on September 12, 2020 at OCA.
In honor of March as National Foreign Language Month, here is your favorite word (book) in seven languages with which you may, or may not, be familiar! Azerbaijani-Kitab; Estonian-Ramat; Farsi-Ketabi; Luxembourgish-Buch; Mongolian-Nom; Zulu-Incwadi. And here are all the LGBTQ Knigi(Russian) you can add to your shelf this month.
In the captivating Fiebre Tropical, by Lambda Literary Fellow Juliana Delgado Lopera, a young protagonist grapples with a chaotic new life and an intense, but troubled, relationship.
Uprooted from her comfortable life in Bogotá, Colombia, into an ant-infested Miami townhouse, fifteen-year-old Francisca is miserable and friendless in her strange new city. Her alienation grows when her mother is swept up into an evangelical church, replete with Christian salsa, abstinent young dancers, and baptisms for the dead.
But there, Francisca also meets the magnetic Carmen: opinionated and charismatic, head of the youth group, and the pastor’s daughter. As her mother’s mental health deteriorates and her grandmother descends into alcoholism, Francisca falls more and more intensely in love with Carmen. To get closer to her, Francisca turns to Jesus to be saved, even as their relationship hurtles toward a shattering conclusion.
I’ve noticed that if the book’s title has the word “Perfect” in it, something awful is going to happen. In the case of The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida, author Clarissa Goenawan begins the novel with a tragic death. But Goenawan, like any skilled novelist, manages to elegantly reveal both the pain and beauty of unraveling a life after loss. This is only her second novel to date, and she’s already been compared to the wizard of world-building, Haruki Murakami.
On The Perfect World of Miwako Sumida, from the publisher:
University sophomore Miwako Sumida has hanged herself, leaving those closest to her reeling. In the months before her suicide, she was hiding away in a remote mountainside village, but what, or whom, was she running from? Ryusei, a fellow student at Waseda who harbored unrequited feelings for Miwako, begs her best friend Chie to bring him to the remote village where she spent her final days. While they are away, his older sister, Fumi, who took Miwako on as an apprentice in her art studio, receives an unexpected guest at her apartment in Tokyo, distracting her from her fear that Miwako’s death may ruin what is left of her brother’s life.
Expanding on the beautifully crafted world of Rainbirds, Clarissa Goenawan gradually pierces through a young woman’s careful façade, unmasking her most painful secrets.
Repeat after me: Peter Piper the Pickled Pepper Picker Picked A Peck of Pickled Peppers. Got it? Now try this one: The Fabulous Ekphrastic Fantastic. Better yet, order a copy from Sibling Rivalry Press. Author and Founding Editor of queer literary collective Foglifter, Miah Jeffra’s collection explosively subverts genres, moving seamlessly between critical, narrative and lyrical modes to take the reader on a seductive journey through the perceptions and aesthetics of sexuality, as depicted by art.
On The Fabulous Ekphrastic Fantastic, from the publisher:
“A river’s edge, if approached too close, can sweep a body beyond itself.” In The Fabulous Ekphrastic Fantastic!, Miah Jeffra perfects apostrophe as canticle, a host of heroes beckoning the reader deeper into the waters of selfhood, Madonna, Mary Shelley, Felix Gonzalez Torres, Plato, and Jeffra’s mother among them. Jeffra explores the nature of gender, sexuality, aesthetics, and love, taking a tiny hammer to the stability of the limits of perception, troubling the tether between perception and memory. At once memoir and cultural criticism, this collection discovers itself as a book about forgiveness, family, and the truths we find in “the lightness of a door,” “the probability of a radio,” the long line between one story and another.
Find yourself saying “no” when your work buddies invite you out for drinks? Do you treasure time in your room above all else? According to Lambda Literary Award Winner for both Gay Fiction and Creative Nonfiction, Fenton Johnson, it might not be so bad to be a recluse. At the Center of All Beauty: Solitude and the Creative Life offers the lives of historical literary giants as evidence in the compelling case for seclusion and peace. Thank Goodness… someone gets me.
Whether seeking more time for solitude or suffering what seems a surfeit of it, readers will find the best of companions here. Fenton Johnson’s lyrical prose and searching sensibility explores what it means to choose to be solitary and celebrates the notion, common in his Roman Catholic childhood, that solitude is a legitimate and dignified calling. He delves into the lives and works of nearly a dozen iconic “solitaries” he considers his kindred spirits, from Thoreau at Walden Pond and Emily Dickinson in Amherst, to Bill Cunningham photographing the streets of New York; from Cézanne (married, but solitary nonetheless) painting Mont Sainte-Victoire over and over again, to the fiercely self-protective Zora Neale Hurston. Each character portrait is full of intense detail, the bright wakes they’ve left behind illuminating Fenton Johnson’s own journey from his childhood in the backwoods of Kentucky to his travels alone throughout the world and the people he has lost and found along the way.
This month in fantasy, get ready for Lambda Literary Award Winner TJ Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea. This is a beautifully told story about learning your true values whilst dismantling the powers that be.
Linus Baker is a by-the-book case worker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He’s tasked with determining whether six dangerous magical children are likely to bring about the end of the world.
Arthur Parnassus is the master of the orphanage. He would do anything to keep the children safe, even if it means the world will burn. And his secrets will come to light.
This March is a huge month for queer poetry. One book of note is Postcolonial Love Poem, the new collection from poet Natalie Diaz. Chair in Modern and Contemporary Poetry at Arizona State University, Natalie Diaz is the recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, a Lannan Literary Fellowship, a Native Arts and Cultures Foundation Artist Fellowship, a Nimrod/Hardman Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry and the winner of an American Book Award for the critically acclaimed When My Brother Was An Aztec.
Postcolonial Love Poem is an anthem of desire against erasure. Natalie Diaz’s brilliant second collection demands that every body carried in its pages—bodies of language, land, rivers, suffering brothers, enemies, and lovers—be touched and held as beloveds. Through these poems, the wounds inflicted by America onto an indigenous people are allowed to bloom pleasure and tenderness: “Let me call my anxiety, desire, then. / Let me call it, a garden.” In this new lyrical landscape, the bodies of indigenous, Latinx, black, and brown women are simultaneously the body politic and the body ecstatic. In claiming this autonomy of desire, language is pushed to its dark edges, the astonishing dunefields and forests where pleasure and love are both grief and joy, violence and sensuality.
And as always, if our list of LGBTQ releases missed an author or book, or if you have a book coming out next month, please email us.