The authors and illustrators of the 9 picture books named in the Supreme Court book banning case Mahmoud v Taylor have issued a joint statement with the help of PEN America:
On January 17, 2025, the Supreme Court of the United States announced that it will hear Mahmoud v. Taylor, a case brought by a group of parents from Montgomery County, Maryland, against the Board of Education for the County school district. The case revolves around the district’s decision to include certain books with LGBTQ+ characters and themes in the elementary school curriculum. The parents argue that their religious rights are being violated by not being able to opt their children out of class when such books are to be used. We, as authors and illustrators of the books, strongly support the school district and its decision to include our books in the curriculum.
We created our books with love and care. Children and their parents need to see families like their own in books. We have all had the experience of meeting a child and their family who are delighted by our books. We have been told about children hugging our books and carrying them everywhere they go. We have heard emotional stories from adults who wish they had had our books when they were growing up. These were the books we ourselves needed when we were young.
We stand in support of the Montgomery County School District. We oppose censoring or segregating books, like ours, that feature LGBTQ+ people. All families deserve to be seen and heard. To act otherwise is harmful and sends a devastating message to students: that their lives and families are so offensive and dangerous that they can’t even be discussed in school.
Specifically targeting books about one group of families and children is discriminatory and leaves this group vulnerable to mistreatment and bullying. A ruling in favor of the plaintiffs in this case would undermine teachers in their efforts to create safe, inclusive classrooms where all children learn to treat each other with respect and kindness. Research shows that representation is linked to better educational outcomes.
Every child deserves the freedom to read. The freedom to read leads to the freedom to learn. Children need to know that there are other people like them in the world, that they aren’t alone, that their hopes and fears are shared by others. And they need the freedom to read about different people with different views, from diverse ethnic backgrounds and abilities. The freedom to read means that children are free to have their own thoughts and beliefs and to make their own choices. It helps prepare them to be good citizens, to navigate and succeed in a complex and diverse world.
Our most basic duty as members of society is to respect and care for each other, no matter how similar or different we may be. Children want to see themselves in books; all children need to see many different kinds of people in books.
Sarah Brannen, author of Uncle Bobby’s Wedding
Chris Case, illustrator of Jacob’s Room to Choose
Carolyn Choi, author of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
LaToya Council, author of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
Daniel Haack, author of Prince & Knight
Ian Hoffman, author of Jacob’s Room to Choose
Sarah Hoffman, author of Jacob’s Room to Choose
Stevie Lewis, illustrator of Prince & Knight
Katherine Locke, author of What Are Your Words?
Julie McLaughlin, illustrator of Pride Puppy
DeShanna Neal, author of My Rainbow
Trinity Neal, author of My Rainbow
Andy Passchier, illustrator of What Are Your Words?
Jodie Patterson, author of Born Ready: The True Story of a Boy Named Penelope
Chelsea Johnson Rabb, author of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
Ashley Seil Smith, illustrator of IntersectionAllies: We Make Room For All
Robin Stevenson, author of Pride Puppy
Charlotte Sullivan Wild, author of Love, Violet
For more information, visit the PEN.org post.
