BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A group of Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce members gathered Thursday and listened to readings of two children’s books.
Those books were "Papa, Daddy, & Riley," about a young girl whose classmate questions her for having two fathers, and "Julián is a Mermaid," about a boy taking part in Coney Island's famed Mermaid Parade.
These books have one thing in common — they have both been banned and challenged in several school districts across the country.
Those bans and challenges were the subject of ‘Turning the Page: Book Bans Part II,’ an event held by the Bethlehem Chamber and LGBTQ Business Council.
“I feel that those [districts] are trying to erase folks, certain communities,” said LGBTQ Business Council Board Member Ace, who read the books to the crowd.
“I also feel that they are trying to shelter the next generation and create a community that is led more in ignorance and in fear than love and compassion.”
According to the American Library Association (ALA), preliminary 2023 data shows a 20% increase in book challenges and bans from last year across the country.
2022 had the highest number of challenges and bans since the ALA began collecting data.
“The vast majority of challenges were to books written by or about a person of color or a member of the LGBTQIA+ community,” the report reads.
The chamber held a similar event in October. Ace said it was well-attended, so they and other members of the board decided to host a follow-up event that focused more on preventing book bans from happening.
‘There are people who care about their identities’
The panel, moderated by LGBTQ Business Council board member Nicole Barbour-Allen, included Silk Lehigh Valley Program Coordinator Chloe Cole-Wilson, Bethlehem Area School District Supervisor of Literacy & Humanities Kimberly Harper, Cedar Crest College Librarian Nicholas Galante and author Robin Gow.
Gow said while his books have not been directly banned or challenged, three different author talks have been canceled by schools “because of fear of backlash that would happen.”
“Even if a book isn't specifically banned, we're entering into a culture and an environment where there's apprehension around literally any kind of diversity and assumption that there might be a challenge,” Gow said.
Harper said the Bethlehem Area School District has not seen a lot of challenges. The district allows public comment periods for its curriculum reviews.
“There might be a parent who does not want their child to read a particular work, let's say and then for that parent, and that student, we will make alternate assignments. And that's how we handle it,” Harper said.
Cole-Wilson referenced the national parents’ rights groups that have often led the charge on book bans and challenges. She said she agrees that parents should not be left out of the conversation.
“We need to make those connections with parents that are authentic, that really feels like we're meeting them at their level,” Cole-Wilson said.
“[We can say,] ‘We understand this is content that is controversial for your household. How can I as an educator, as a social worker, as a support person in your child's life, bridge the gap, and make sure your child's needs are being served?’”
“We'd like to hope that it is a question of just awareness, education, conversations like this."Cedar Crest College Librarian Nicholas Galante
Galante said some have “demonized” people who want to challenge or ban books, but that many attempts are coming from parents who think removing the books would protect children or prevent uncomfortable conversations with their children.
“We'd like to hope that it is a question of just awareness, education, conversations like this,” Galante said.
Cole-Wilson said at Silk Lehigh Valley, an organization for LGBTQ youth, that young people have raised questions about what book bans and challenges mean.
“'Does that mean that I'm not visible? Does that mean that I'm not seen?’” Cole-Wilson said. “And so really, what we do in these conversations is ensure that our young people feel comforted and that they know that events like these are happening.
“There are people who care about this literature, there are people who care about their identities.”
A regional trend
The event comes as challenges to school books have come to Lehigh Valley school districts.
Parkland School District parent David Horvath and former school board candidate Laura Warmkessel objected to 15 books in the online school library.
Of the 15 books on the list, 13 discuss LGBTQ issues or have LGBTQ characters.
The Northampton County chapter of Moms for Liberty, a right-wing parental rights group, has challenged 23 books in the Nazareth Area School District. The cost to review all the books is estimated to be $100,000.
According to ALA data, Pennsylvania saw 56 attempts to restrict access to books in 2022.
The state Senate passed legislation in December that would require school districts to have to go through all of their school library books and classroom material to weed out “sexually explicit” content.
The bill is currently in the House Education Committee, chaired by Lehigh County Democrat Peter Schweyer. He previously said he won’t advance it and called it a “straight-up book ban.”
