Book Ban Fight in Nevada Would Create LGBTQ+ Section of Libraries
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Before the Washoe County School District Board meeting began, the library filled up with locals eager to make their case. A group of older adults held hands in a prayer circle. Elsewhere in the room, younger members held signs opposing book censorship in Washoe County, Nevada’s second-biggest county.
The proceedings dragged on for several hours until it was finally time for attendees to make their public comments. One of the first came from an older man wearing a University of Nevada, Reno hat. “Children are very impressionable,” he said. “In today’s society, their innocence should be protected, not exploited… Should pornographic materials be removed from children’s access?”
The man was there to speak out against drag queen story hours and in favor of a proposal to relocate books with LGBTQ+ content to a specific “LGBTQ+” section of local libraries. Versions of this scene are currently playing out all around the country, which is undergoing an unprecedented wave of book censorship. During an election year that’s projected to be one of the worst in history for anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, some conservative groups are continuing to rally against book bans and public drag appearances in the name of protecting children.
“We need to understand that the goal is for people to be energizing their movements,” Allen Ratliff, assistant professor at the School of Social Work at the University of Nevada, Reno, told Teen Vogue.
The backlash in Washoe County, for example, was started by Nevada Patriot, a self-proclaimed conservative group, that launched a petition stating, “This is NOT about BANNING books, but rather placing obscene and pornographic material in the public libraries into the adult section and removing obscene and pornographic books from availability of minors.”
But Ratliff believes reshelving books to different parts of the library is just as harmful as banning them.
“So, for example, there's a book called And Tango Makes Three. It's about two male penguins who adopt a baby penguin and they have a little family… it's a children's book,” Ratliff explained.
Under the proposal, this book would be taken out the children’s section and would be moved into a specific section titled “LGBTQ+.” “If people were trying to learn about LGBT things or read books with LGBT characters, they'd have to go to the section with a big sign over this is LGBT, and really sort of out themselves,” they said.
Opponents of the proposal have spoken up, too, with youth activists issuing a call to action and encouraging their peers to speak up. Local residents have sent dozens of emails to the School District expressing their concern with the restrictions on book access, while students have taken to Instagram to spread awareness of the situation.
The Drag Story Hours have also been a point of contention in Washoe County, as in so many other parts of the country. Hosted by the Washoe County Library System with support from Our Center, Northern Nevada’s LGBTQIA community center, the program is billed as a family-friendly event where members of the LGBTQ+ community can feel supported and safe.
Stacey Spain, executive director of Our Center, explains that the organization helps create a fun environment for kids.
“What we do is get lots and lots of very excited and very energetic volunteers to come help make sure that the kids entering the library, the families entering the library, feel safe and supported,” Spain explained. “[We] make sure that we have fun activities outside of the library to draw attention to inclusive practices around literacy and to celebrate LGBTQ community.”
Though it’s intended to be a safe space, families have been harassed while waiting in line.
“We have observed… people in the public videotaping and filming children, trying to get right in the child's face and get right in the parents face in a way that makes the families very uncomfortable,” Spain expressed.
In response, Our Center launched the “Rainbow Umbrella Brigade” to combat the harassment from the families. Volunteers use colorful umbrellas as shields from the perpetrators and it helps distract the kids.
Opposition to the events comes from a “very small but very vocal group,” Spain said, noting that the library rarely spends money on the program, while Our Center pays the performers and buys the arts and crafts for the kids.
Both Ratliff and Spain say efforts to “protect” kids by restricting access to LGBTQ+ materials and activities actually end up further marginalizing LGBTQ+ youth.
Silver State Equality, Nevada’s statewide civil rights organization, released a report featuring data collected in 2023 from student surveys and listening sessions from students in 7-12 grade.
About 32% of students reported they are not allowed to use their chosen name at school. Additionally, about 19% are not allowed to wear gender-aligned clothing. Sixty percent reported being bullied and teased for being part of the LGBTQ+ community.
“The [school] climate right now is very toxic and mentally taxing,” one Nevada high school senior pointed out in the report.
About 75% of students say their school has inadequate resources for LGBTQ+ students. Additionally, about 38% have never learned about LGBTQ+ history, been assigned books, or heard of stories or people from the LGBTQ+ community.
“I feel as though there needs to be more education and speaking in schools about LGBTQ+ issues and learning about LGBTQ+ history,” a high school freshman expressed in the report.
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Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue
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