Over 30 celebrities join auction to put LGBTQ+ books in classrooms
September 27, 2024Over 30 celebrities have joined forces in an auction aimed at preventing censorship in education and combating book bans.
Pride and Less Prejudice is organising its fourth annual #BannedTogether virtual auction this weekend, with the goal of raising $20,000 (approximately £15,000) to distribute 1,600 free LGBTQ+-inclusive books to elementary schools across the United States. Since 2019, the organisation has raised over $250,000 (approximately £187,000) and donated more than 16,000 LGBTQ+-inclusive books to Pre-K through 3rd-grade classrooms in all 50 states.
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This year's auction includes items and experiences contributed by celebrities such as singer Janelle Monáe, actor Daniel Radcliffe, interior designer Bobby Berk, tennis legend Billie Jean King, singer Jason Mraz, rapper Big Freedia, drag queens Jinkx Monsoon, BenDeLaCreme, Latrice Royale, actress Lily Tomlin, musician Sara Bareilles, comedian Hannah Gadsby, comedian Margaret Cho, author Casey McQuiston, among others.
“I'm thrilled to support Pride and Less Prejudice in their mission to bring LGBTQ+ inclusive books into classrooms and early education centers,” Big Freedia told ‘The Advocate’. “As a young gay boy in New Orleans during the '80s, having access to a book that addressed these themes or featured LGBTQ+ characters would have profoundly impacted my life!”
The virtual auction is being held in conjunction with Banned Books Week, an annual event highlighting the issue of challenged books. According to a recent report from PEN America, over 10,000 books were banned from public schools in the 2023-2024 academic year, nearly three times the number from the previous year.
“In 2023, the American Library Association saw a 65 percent increase in the number of titles targeted for censorship compared to 2022, with a focus on books by and about LGBTQ+ people and people of color,” stated Lisa Forman, founder of Pride and Less Prejudice. “Pride and Less Prejudice is committed to ensuring that students have access to LGBTQ-inclusive books at school and in their libraries to see themselves and their families represented.”
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