Most ‘Challenged’ Books on Censorship List Feature LGBTQ Themes

The America Library Association this week released its annual list of the 10 books that were most frequently “challenged” as targets of attempted censorship—and eight of the 10 have a single theme in common, according to a CNN report. They all dealt with LGBTQ themes.  "We have been noticing a trend where the majority of the books in the top most challenged list either have LGBTQ themes or characters,” the ALA’s Deborah Caldwell-Stone told CNN. “Books with trans-identifying characters seem to be particularly targeted.” The Association also reported a 17 percent spike in censorship attempts in 2019, compared to the previous year. But the group cautioned that its statistics are only a “snapshot” of the total censorship “challenges,” and that between 82 and 97 percent of book-censorship attempts go unreported, according to an NBC News report. In 2019, the ALA recorded challenges to more than 600 books in libraries, schools, and universities, according to the NBC report. But of the top 10, more than half were challenged for containing LGBTQ themes for the fourth year in a row. The 2019 Top 10 list included: • A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, by Jill Twiss, illustrated by E. G. Keller. Promoted by comedian John Oliver on his HBO program Last Week Tonight, the children’s book features a rabbit, Marlon Bundo, who is in a same-sex relationship with another bunny, Wesley. • George by Alex Gino, a novel for kids about a transgender 10-year-old, also made the “most challenged” list in 2016 and 2017. • Drama by Raina Telgemeier, a graphic novel about a theater-obsessed teen determined to create a Broadway-worthy set for a school play. But the LGBTQ themes in the comic book caused protests claiming that it violates “family values.” • And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson, illustrated by Henry Cole, is a children’s book in which two male penguins raise a baby chick together.  • I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings, illustrated by Shelagh McNicholas, has appeared on the list regularly since 2014 because it tells the first person story of a transgendered person, a topic that is allegedly “sensitive, controversial and politically charged.” • Prince & Knight by Daniel Haack, illustrated by Stevie Lewis, tells the fairy-tale story of a romance between the two title characters. But the book was attacked as a “deliberate attempt to indoctrinate young children” into a gay lifestyle. • Sex is a Funny Word by Cory Silverberg, illustrated by Fiona Smyth, is intended as a sex-education book for children, but was challenged for its “inappropriate” title and illustrations, as well as for discussing gender identity. • Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out by Susan Kuklin was subject to attempted censorship for being “sexually explicit and biased.” • The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling came under censorship fire due to its themes of magic and witchcraft. • The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, a classic, feminist dystopian novel that went on to become a hit series on the Hulu streaming network was challenged for “vulgarity and sexual overtones,” the ALA reported. Of all of the recorded challenges in 2019, the largest number, 13 percent, came from school boards and administrations, but 12 percent came from political or religious groups. Only one percent of the challenges came from students themselves, according to the ALA numbers. Photo By Piotr VaGla Waglowski / Wikimedia Commons Public Domain