We went to story time at the Iredell Public Library yesterday. The reader selected "It's Okay to be Different" by Todd Parr.
Personally, I think it's a great book. It goes through several different subjects stating that "It's okay if...". For example, "It's okay to be a different color." And the picture would be of two zebras, one black and white, and one different colors.The reader comes to a page and announces to the group that, "I'm gonna skip over this page, and I'll show you why." She shows us the page. It's the cartoon faces of two women next to each other, and the faces of two men next to each other. The book reads, "It's okay to have different mommies and different daddies." Or something like that. The reader is nodding her head and raising her eyebrows as if to say, "See this filth?"
I can't decide what to do. I checked the Iredell Public Library website and they have no email address to contact them. I hate confrontation, so I'm pretty apprehensive about going there in person and accusing this lady of bigotry.
Maybe I'm reading way too much into this. Maybe the reader was thinking that some of the parents/grandparents that were present really didn't want to have that discussion with their kids. Discussing issues with your kids is pretty overrated anyway. Am I right or am I right?
I guess I just feel like she should have never even chosen that book to read if she's going to censor it due to her "beliefs".
So, is it okay to different in Statesville, NC? I guess it is, if you are a colorful zebra.
8 comments:
What ignorant people fail to realize by censoring or banning something they deam immoral or subversive. well that just causes the rest of to find out what it is.
1. The reader should have chosen a different book.
2. If the book was "forced" on the reader, that person should have just skipped that section without mentioning it and interjecting their personal opinions.
oh good fucking lord. ugh. you need to let ginger take care of that one, get her hormones all in a tizzy and send her there to be confrontational. i think i'd be scared of ginger when she's in that sort of mode. maybe get her drunk first.
ps - sarana thought that was a great title "its okay to be different....unless you actually are".
or however you said it
:D
Damn. Gotta love it down here in NC! I had to walk to a meeting with one of my (male) neighbors for some HOA business the other day. Of course, I had to take Jane with me.
You should have seen the looks we got walking downtown. Two guys and a baby. Some folks looked proud, most just looked away.
Of course, likewise I was much more attune to how people were viewing us. Hmm.
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Bahhhhhh. Pathetic. How hard would it have been for her read that page and move on? Let the parents deal with the questions (hardly anything to deal with, imho).
I'm not sure how many parents were there, but sadly I reckon that there would have been more angry parents had she read that page than the one we know of (you) b/c she did not. Perhaps I'm judging my fellow NC folks a bit too harshly (or perhaps I'm just taking a jab at Iredell County!).
Well, if you can't handle it you could always move back and play on my kickball team.
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