{"id":8829,"date":"2021-09-13T09:33:18","date_gmt":"2021-09-13T14:33:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/?page_id=8829"},"modified":"2025-08-05T10:11:57","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T14:11:57","slug":"gender-queer","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/bannedbooks\/gender-queer\/","title":{"rendered":"Banned Books 2025 &#8211; Gender Queer: A Memoir"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"marsha-row mt-4 mb-4 flex flex-wrap -mx-2 lg:-mx-6  justify-start border-0 border-gray-100 first:mt-0\">\n\t\n<p><!-- *  START LEFT COLUMN  *--><div class=\"columns w-full lg:w-3\/12  lg:px-6    mt-6\">\n<div class=\"\">\n\n<div>\n                                            \n\n<h2>Links<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a id=\"current\" href=\"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/bannedbooks\/bannedbooks-2025\/author\/\">2025 Author<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/bannedbooks\/bannedbooks-2025\/title\/\">2025 Title<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/bannedbooks\/\">Banned Books Home<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><hr \/><\/p>\n<h2>Cover<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/files\/2021\/09\/gender-queer.jpg\" alt=\"gender queer: a memoir book cover\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-2351\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mulibiiidb.marshall.edu\/record=b2261941~S12\">Held at Marshall University (Drinko Graphic Novels &#8211; PN6727.K655 G46 2020)<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/cabellcounty.ent.sirsi.net\/client\/en_US\/cabell\/search\/results?qu=Gender+Queer&amp;te=&amp;rt=false%7C%7C%7CTITLE%7C%7C%7CTitle\">Held at Cabell County Public Library<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- *** ** END LEFT COLUMN ** ***-->\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/p><p><!-- *** ** START RIGHT COLUMN ** **--><div class=\"columns w-full lg:w-9\/12  lg:px-6    mt-6\">\n<div class=\"\">\n\n<p><strong>Marshall University does not ban books!  The information is provided to let people know what has been banned\/challenged elsewhere.<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2>2025<\/h2>\n<p>Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.<\/p>\n<p>Members of Purple for Parents Indiana challenged eight titles at the Middlebury Public Library (IN), including <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> and <strong>You Be You<\/strong>. The review committee recommended retaining all titles without restriction. The board upheld their recommendation. Despite this, members of the hate group continue to harass and threaten the library director. Flyers were posted throughout town falsely accusing her of distributing illegal obscenity to minors.<\/p>\n<p>The Geneva County Republican Women, Intercessors for Children, state representative Rick Rehm, and conservative radio personalities all engaged in a campaign to pressure the Dothan Houston County Library System (AL) to censor books. The titles targeted were ones the groups characterized as \u201charmful, obscene materials,\u201d such as ones with LGBTQIA+ representation or that are part of \u201ca DEI movement.\u201d  <strong>This Book is Gay<\/strong> and  <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> were moved from the young adult to the adult section in response to these efforts. The 47 other books they challenged were retained in the YA collection<\/p>\n<p><strong>Looking for Alaska<\/strong> was one of eight titles at the Pickens County Public Library (SC) that were targeted for censorship in 2024. Individuals spoke out at board meetings and wrote letters to the editor of <strong>The Pickens County Courier<\/strong> falsely claiming that the books were illegal, \u201cobscene,\u201d and \u201cmaterials harmful to children.\u201d  <strong>Drama<\/strong>, <strong>Flamer<\/strong>, <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong>, <strong>Forever<\/strong>, and <strong>Fade<\/strong> were retained without restriction. <strong>All Boys Aren\u2019t Blue<\/strong> and <strong>Looking for Alaska<\/strong> were moved from the Young Adult section to Adult Biography and Adult Fiction, respectively.<\/p>\n<h2>2024<\/h2>\n<p>Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.<\/p>\n<p>On March 18, the board of the Ada Community Library (ID) voted to remove six titles, including <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong>. They claimed the books were \u201charmful to minors\u201d because they appeared on an ALA list of frequently challenged titles. The board also falsely<br \/>\nclaimed that having the books in the library violated Idaho state law. The library had not received requests to reconsider the titles. On April 25, the board acknowledged a \u201cprocedural deficit\u201d at their March meeting and returned all six titles to the shelves.<\/p>\n<h2>2023<\/h2>\n<p>Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to have sexually explicit images.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> and <strong>It\u2019s Perfectly Normal<\/strong> were challenged at Maine School Administrative District #6. Both were retained without restriction.<\/p>\n<p>A request for the reconsideration of <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> was submitted to the Liberty Lake Municipal Library (WA), claiming the title was pornographic. The title was retained, but the outcome was appealed to the library board. The board upheld the decision by a vote of 4-2. A community member who advocated for banning <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> was then appointed to the City Council. In December, the council proposed an ordinance changing the library\u2019s reconsideration process so the council would adjudicate challenge appeals instead of the library board.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A Court of Mist and Fury<\/strong> was removed from Virginia Beach City Public School (VA) libraries after a school board member challenged it. Following its removal from the school district, petitions seeking to bar the sale of <strong>A Court of Mist and Fury<\/strong> and <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> on grounds they were obscene progressed to the Circuit Court for the City of Virginia Beach. The petitions were challenged by the ACLU of Virginia. The American Library Association and Freedom to Read Foundation were amici curiae. The Circuit Court rejected the petitions and vacated a lower court finding of probable cause for obscenity.<\/p>\n<p>Parents challenged 5 titles in Shawnee Heights Unified School District 450 (KS) libraries, including <strong>The Hate U Give<\/strong>, <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong>, and <strong>All Boys Aren\u2019t Blue<\/strong>. State senator Rick Kloos publicly stated that he supported efforts to remove <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> and held a meeting with school superintendent Tim Hallacy to discuss the matter. All five titles were retained<\/p>\n<h2>2022<\/h2>\n<p>Banned, challenged, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Gender Queer: A Memoir<\/strong> by Maia Kobabe was one of five LGBTQIA+ titles challenged by a parent at the North Hunterdon-Voorhees (NJ) Regional High School District. The other titles were <strong>Fun Home<\/strong> by Alison Bechdel, <strong>Lawn Boy<\/strong> by Jonathan Evison, <strong>This Book Is Gay<\/strong> by Juno Dawson, and <strong>All Boys Aren\u2019t Blue<\/strong> by George M. Johnson. The parent read some snippets, called for audits, and threatened criminal charges for those responsible for providing \u201cevil, wicked\u201d content in the school. The school board voted to retain all five challenged LGBTQIA+ titles.<\/p>\n<p>At McLean County (IL) Unit School District No. 5, some speakers at a school board meeting called <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> pornographic, saying the book is a form of \u201cgrooming.\u201d In 90 minutes of public comments, some of the most commonly raised concerns related to school library books, diversity, and inclusion. The school board made no decision about the book at this meeting.<\/p>\n<p>In the Harrisonburg (VA) City Public Schools, several people from outside the school district complained about <strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> in a school board meeting. The superintendent, acting on his own initiative, removed the book from the high school library. He admitted there has not been a formal challenge to the book, so this is outside the district\u2019s procedure for challenges.<\/p>\n<p>A noncustodial parent of a child attending the Central Kitsap (WA) School District filed police reports against the high school librarian, principal, superintendent, and school board members alleging they<br \/>\nwere distributing \u201cpedophilic pornography.\u201d Removed, but then a Freedom of Information Act request to determine whether policy had been followed resulted in a committee review, and the decision to restore<br \/>\n<strong>Gender Queer<\/strong> to the shelves. The book was subsequently checked out and not returned. The replacement copy ordered by the school district was also stolen.<\/p>\n<p>A group of parents distributed flyers containing excerpts and illustrations from this and other books at a meeting of the Rockwood (MO) School District Board. After the meeting, they submitted requests for reconsideration of <strong>This One Summer<\/strong> by Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki, <strong>All Boys Aren\u2019t Blue<\/strong> by George M. Johnson, <strong>Crank<\/strong> by Ellen Hopkins, <strong>Gender Queer: A Memoir<\/strong> by Maia Kobabe, <strong>The Haters<\/strong> by Jesse Andrews, <strong>Looking for Alaska<\/strong> by John Green, <strong>Where I End and You Begin<\/strong> by Preston Norton, <strong>Heroine<\/strong> by Mindy McGinnis, and <strong>The Breakaways<\/strong> by Cathy G. Johnson, claiming the books were pornographic. A review committee of two teachers, two librarians, a curriculum coordinator, a school board member, four parents, and two high school students voted to retain all challenged titles. However, The Breakaways was restricted to students in fourth grade and up.<\/p>\n<p>In some of the other places across the United States where the book was challenged, <strong>Gender<br \/>\nQueer<\/strong> was:<br \/>\n\u2022 Retained in Richardson (TX) Independent School District<br \/>\n\u2022 Banned in Orange County (FL) Public Schools<br \/>\n\u2022 Retained in the Sheboygan Falls (WI) Memorial Library<br \/>\n\u2022 Banned in Greenville County (SC) Schools<br \/>\n\u2022 Banned in Anchorage (AK) School District<br \/>\n\u2022 Banned in Pinellas County (FL) School District<br \/>\n\u2022 Banned in West Chester (PA) Area School District<br \/>\n\u2022 Banned in Loudoun County (VA) Public Schools<br \/>\n\u2022 Retained in Billings (MT) Public Schools<\/p>\n<h2>2021<\/h2>\n<p>A patron asked the staff of the Huntington Beach (CA) Public Library for this graphic novel memoir about growing up nonbinary. She filled out a request for re-evaluation form, then posted out-of-context images from the book on Facebook, leading to many negative and inflammatory posts advocating for the destruction of the book and challenging library staff. The patron also contacted the library director, city manager, and other members of the city council. The book was moved from the teen to the adult collection.<\/p>\n<h2>On These Pages<\/h2>\n<p>A <strong>Banned<\/strong> book has been removed from a library, classroom, etc.<br \/>\nA <strong>Challenged<\/strong> book has been requested to be removed from a library, classroom, etc.<\/p>\n<h2>For additional information contact<\/h2>\n<p>Ron Titus, <a href=\"mailto:titus@marshall.edu\">titus@marshall.edu<\/a><br \/>\n<a href=\"tel:304-696-6575\">304-696-6575<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Last updated<\/h2>\n<p>August 5, 2025<\/p>\n<p><!-- ** ** END RIGHT COLUMN *** *-->\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n<p><!-- *** * END FULL PAGE DIV * *** --><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":784,"featured_media":0,"parent":2039,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-full-width.php","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-8829","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/784"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8829"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8829\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15335,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8829\/revisions\/15335"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2039"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/library\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}