Panel votes to keep 2 LGBTQ-themed books
A Poway Unified School District committee that reviewed two LGBTQ-themed books that had received formal complaints about their subject matter and appropriateness to students has decided that both books will remain in high school libraries.
Following complaints in October about the books “Gender Queer” and “Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic,” the district’s Review Committee, composed of parents, students, teachers and district staff, met several times to review the books. The committee voted 9-3 to continue having both books available in general circulation, said Christine Paik, the district’s spokesperson. Paik said the books are not part of the district’s required reading.
Carol Osborne, associate superintendent of Learning Support Services, said committee members were “thoughtful and deliberate” in their decision.
“Despite the social pressures surrounding their decisions, the committee ultimately made their decision based on the books’ intended educational use and literary merit, as outlined in our administrative regulations,” Osborne said in a news release.
A copy of “Gender Queer,” a graphic novel that recounts author Maia Kobabe’s experience growing up and exploring their gender identity and sexuality, is available in one district high school library. And one copy of “Fun Home,” a graphic novel that serves as a memoir of author and cartoonist Alison Bechdel about her complicated relationship with her father and both of their gay identities, is available in three district high school libraries, Paik said.
The complaint about “Gender Queer” lists a number of “objectionable” subjects in the book, including “excessive focus on alternate gender ideologies, obscene sexual activities & nudity.” The complaint about “Fun Home” says it could lead to outcomes such as “gender dysphoria, loss of innocence, self harm, threat to family values, risky behavior/sexual experimentation.”
The challenges faced by these books at Poway Unified join a long list of challenges across the country. Locally, Fallbrook High School District is also facing a challenge for “Fun Home.”