Adam Alex Sanchez, an openly gay author whose book, Rainbow Boys, was included on the American Library Association’s list of Best Books for Young Adults in 2002, has been refused the opportunity to speak to high school students in Charlotte County, N.B., after school principals began receiving complaints from parents about the proposed author appearance.
Keith Pierce, District 10 superintendent, said he changed his mind about allowing the author to speak in area schools after meeting with school principals.
“A few of them were getting pressure from a few parents, and they just weren’t comfortable going in that direction,” Pierce said.
Some principals felt their schools were just “not ready” for the kind of presentation that Sanchez will give, he said.
Although it is no doubt true that certain hidebound parents and school principals are “not ready” to hear an author and public speaker present a message of tolerance and respect to their young ’uns, this Quillblogger suggests that there are likely any number of students in Charlotte County high schools who are struggling with their sexuality and would appreciate hearing that they’re not alone or abnormal.
You call this “censorship”? When Christian authors are not invited to speak, is it also considered “censorship”? When Cuba bans books, do you also accuse them of “censorship”? The school director was absolutely right. Schools are paid by the parents and they should have a say on controversial issues–ALWAYS.
Murder is controversial. War is controversial. Sexuality is biology and should be treated as such.
I’m a straight male. I don’t know why. I guess I was just born that way. Has my life been changed by the fact that some people are not born straight? Only in good ways. The world is a wonderful place of infinite variety. Ignoring some of this variety because of groundless prejudice would make me a lesser person.
As for stifling Christians and Cubans. . . Well, yes, that is considered censorship and I would rail against that as readily as I am railing against naive notions of what a “controversial” issue is.
The author’s name is Alex, not Adam. See http://www.alexsanchez.com/
Sexuality is ‘natural’, and religions are inventions of the Human mind, so Milla’s comparison is poor..
Gay people have ALWAYS existed and always will.
So it is OK to discuss these realities,
especially when narrow-minded parents oppose the project:
many young people want to hear about homosexuality, but they can’t,
because some people thing they should not…
Children are not born intolerant, they are taught to be intolerant. When well-intentioned parents of the few decide what is right for the many, that’s censorship. Homosexuality is now and has always been a part of society, to pretend that it doesn’t exist is naive and myopic. We have to allow our children to learn about the world. With knowledge comes power.
Sounds like a perfect town for a Stephen Harper slumber party.
WHICH parents get to decide these things? Only the ones who disagree?
[...] week, Quillblog pointed to a CBC story about a Charlotte County, New Brunswick school board that rescinded an invitation to openly gay [...]
This was a wise decision on the part of the school district. I would have pulled my child from school for the day had the speaker appeared as originally arranged. It’s funny that people in the wrong always need to shout louder to have anyone listen… and I won’t.