BOOK CONTROVERSY DESCENDS ON DOWNERS GROVE SCHOOLS
Protesters call book in high schools’ libraries ‘porn,’ but students decry censorship
The nation’s culture wars exploded at a west suburban high school board meeting Monday night as conservative protesters and some parents debated students, fellow parents and community members whether a book on sexual orientation and gender identity was appropriate for the school library.
The graphic novel they targeted, “Gender Queer,” is one of several works that have come under fire nationwide in recent weeks as part of a larger movement by conservative politicians, activists, commentators and small networks of parents to denounce and ban progressive teachings about race and gender.
In some cases critics have claimed children were being exposed to “homoerotic” or “pornographic” language and images. “Gender Queer” is an autobiography about author Maia Kobabe’s journey of gender identity as a teenager and young adult. A few pages that include illustrations of sexual acts have drawn the bulk of the ire.
That opposition has turned school boards into battlegrounds for social fallout, from books to COVID-19 protocols such as masking and vaccination, to more recently mental and emotional health programs. In some cases, school board members have been threatened and needed police protection.
The Chicago area had largely avoided those dust-ups until Monday, when about 200 people packed into an auditorium with police officers and security at Downers Grove North High School for the Community High School District 99 board’s monthly meeting.
About a third of the crowd held “NO PORN” signs and posters showing illustrations and excerpts from “Gender Queer.” The first grumbling came at the very start of the meeting — and another few times over the next couple hours — when board president Nancy Kupka repeatedly asked attendees to put on masks. Groans and shouts also came when people realized an American flag wasn’t on display for the Pledge of Allegiance.
Members of the Proud Boys — a far-right neo-fascist group which has recently latched onto school board protests around the country — promoted the meeting on a messaging app commonly used by far-right activists and urged each other to attend, according to screenshots posted to social media. It’s unclear whether any members of the group showed up.
The school board did not plan to discuss or vote on any items regarding “Gender Queer” — the book was solely brought up during the public speaker portion of the meeting. Supt. Hank Thiele, addressing the topic before people shared their views, said “Gender Queer” met the district’s requirements for inclusion in its library, and it was not part of any class’ required reading. Only one copy of the book is available to check out at each library at Downers North and Downers South high schools, which combined serve nearly 5,000 students.
But administrators will review the book once again since two formal challenges have been filed, he said.
In the public speaker portion of the meeting, Thiele called those who were Downers Grove residents first, before outsiders. Among that initial group, which included several students, all but three speakers showed support for “Gender Queer.”
Lauren Pierret, a 17-year-old senior at Downers Grove North, said she didn’t know “Gender Queer” existed until last week.
“This isn’t being forced upon your kids, but it gives kids who would be interested in this story a choice to read it,” she said.
Pierret also questioned why other books that feature sex scenes such as “The Handmaid’s Tale” and “Angela’s Ashes” were available in the library but not facing the same criticism.
“Let’s not present getting rid of ‘Gender Queer’ as censoring our children from sex,” she told the school board. “It’s homophobia.”
Linda Schranz, a longtime Downers Grove resident whose daughter graduated from District 99, said “despite the noise in the community” she believes it’s a small minority who disagree with the board’s policies. Schranz volunteers with Youth Outlook, a suburbanbased nonprofit that supports LGBTQ youth, and said she sees “Gender Queer” and similar books “as an opportunity for a child who may be exploring or questioning [their identity] to take a look and look at more information.”
Terry Newsome, a Darien resident who said he has a son and daughter at Downers South, said his concerns about “Gender Queer” are not homophobic. If the book was only about LGBTQ students coming out, “parents wouldn’t have an issue with it,” he said.
“The problem is ... this is liberal code for teaching children how to perform oral sex, anal sex, wear strap-on dildos,” he said. “These graphic images are totally unacceptable regardless of their gender or sexuality.
“It’s not your right to decide if our minor children should have access to pornography.”
Before the meeting, one dad, who asked not to be named, said in an interview he had watched YouTube videos about “Gender Queer” and said it was “sick” to have the book available for high schoolers, claiming it “teaches kids how to be gay.”