At a Warwick School District Meeting on November 29th things heated up over the contents of books present inside the school library. Of particular interest were the books Gender Queer and All Boys Aren’t Blue. Both books are among those cited by Fenicia Redman in her lawsuit filed against Great Valley School District. While Fenicia’s battle is ongoing(please support her efforts here) the fact that Governor Wolf prohibited display of posters showing the book’s content due to their graphic nature is strong evidence in her case. For a sample from Gender Queer we encourage you to click here.
If you are familiar with this material of Fenicia’s lawsuit you already know that parents are justifiably upset. Not only do Warwick School District policies prohibit the dissemination of obscene materials there is PA law which also prohibits knowingly disseminating by sale, loan or otherwise explicit sexual materials to a minor. In the Warwick area a group of vocal parents have formed a group called Warwick Parents for Change. These parents largely led the meeting and those who spoke out against the obscene materials also included local clergy and teachers.
Among those who spoke at the meeting was a resident, Ann Martin, who spoke out about a book called Waiting for the Barbarians by J.M Coetzee. She pointed out the inconsistency of the fact that the book contains the use of the F-word 38 times. Martin went on to point out the inconsistency of the fact that “they can get suspended or punished for saying the F-bomb in the hallway, but if they have to read the book out loud for class in the classroom it’s okay.”
While numerous residents echoed Martin’s sentiments there were some who defended keeping the books in the interest of equity. Rev. Matt Lenahan of Zion Lutheran Church seemed critical of Warwick Parents for Change yet also admitted the books like Gender Queer were probably not appropriate for public schools. To read the entire story for yourself click here.