Famous American drag queen and television personality RuPaul is launching a battle against book banning with a brand-new online bookstore called Allstora. Allstora is trying to change the book industry by supporting underrepresented authors and promoting books with a focus on marginalized voices.
In a campaign to support the new bookstore, the drag superstar is sending a “Rainbow Book Bus” across the country. The bus will start in Los Angeles and travel to cities across the south to promote the freedom of literature by distributing books affected by book bans.
In recent years, there has been a significant rise in book banning, a controversial topic that deeply divides Democrats and Republicans. According to statistics presented by PEN America, during the first half of the 2022-2023 school year, over 1,400 books were banned. Thirty percent of the banned books discussed themes of race, and 26% were about LGBTQ+ subjects.
“When we remove books from classrooms, we are giving students a world that doesn’t mirror the world that they actually live in,” said award-winning author George M. Johnson. “It is creating a social environment where only one subject’s story gets told.”
Johnson’s 2020 memoir “All Boys Aren’t Blue” was the third-most banned or challenged book in 2021, according to The American Library Association.
“It’s erasure of a lot of the heinous and cruel ways in which this country was founded and how the ramifications of those cruel ways, i.e., genocide, slavery, still play a major role in society today,” Johnson said.
Students at Hofstra University also expressed their thoughts on the matter, saying that books they read in school helped shape who they are today.
“Reading books like ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and other books that focused on racial issues showed me American history from different points of view and helped me further explore my identity,” said freshman computer science major Osuyuki Richardson.
Additionally, some students believe local governments are ignoring other pressing issues through their concentration on banning books.
“We’re focusing on the wrong things. There are other things that require our attention that need to be banned like guns and things like that, stuff that actually threatens people’s lives,” said sophomore television production and studies major Renelle Wilson.
Other students also expressed concerns about media erasure and a lack of representation.
“I think that if they are banned, children won’t be able to see people like themselves in media and literature which will then hinder their ability to be themselves,” said sophomore history and global studies major Sidney Moe.
When asked why there has been a recent rise in book bans, executive director of the Long Island Library Resources Council Tim Spindler said that conservatives do not trust people to read or interpret texts themselves.
“It comes down to a rise of certain conservative viewpoints that believe more in restricting access and people’s freedom to read,” Spindler said. “I think, ultimately, they don’t trust people to be able to read and interpret things themselves.”
Spindler also shared how those on Long Island are protected from the bans. “There is legislation already in the legislature that would hinder local communities from free and open access to titles.”
Regardless of whether Long Islanders are safe from the bans, other places continue to face an uphill battle.
States visited by the “Rainbow Book Bus,” including Florida, Texas, Missouri and Utah, are leading the efforts to ban books. However, states like California and Illinois continue to dispute the bans by passing defensive bills and threatening library budget cuts. While book banning continues to be an ongoing issue, those in opposition, like RuPaul, continue to fight for the freedom of literature.
PHOTO COURTESY OF PARADE
