Gender, Gender Identities, & Sexual Orientation

          Throughout my Walden journey, this is, indeed, the most bazaar blog that I have written.  The events are unbelievable, although real.   Read on, you’ll understand.
          I went to our neighborhood Toys R Us store, with a specific agenda in mind.  Immediately, I headed for the section where they had doll houses, looking for portrayal of families.  There were many [and I mean many] choices of miniature dolls.  Most of the dolls were sold in groupings, representing a family.  Amongst the choices were heterosexual families with varying amounts of children.  It was interesting that none of the choices of dolls were mom, dad, and child; there were, at least, 2 children, and most, although not all, were one of each sex child.  Then, there were additional miniature children dolls that could be purchased separately.  I did not, however, see specific small dolls that would enable the child playing to have a family with 2 moms or 2 dads; a child could, however, utilize only 1 parent doll to represent a single family head of household.  Some of the groups had dolls resembling a grandmother or grandfather, which was nice to see.  While I would never have given this much thought (which is a problem), I am flabbergasted at the packaging of these minatures.  The implication is that most families are represented by heterosexuals.  I can just hear a little girl, who lives with 2 mothers, picking up a package of dolls wondering where the other mommy is.  
        Then, frustrated, I went to examine their children’s book section.  As I searched through the books (most of which I was familiar with), I did not find any books that represented homosexual or heterosexual families.  Dora was in a majority of the books, although I did not see her family in any of the books; a little girl in the store told me that Dora’s mommy had twins.  This would lead me to believe that Dora was a part of a heterosexual family.  There were many of my favorites, such as “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, ““The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” and “Cordouroy.”  In Cordouroy, we do meet Lisa’s mother, but the rest of her family in not visible. 

          I felt the books were limited and not a good representation of what is available for children.  So, I went to the library to visit the children’s section.  I asked the librarian, A. Front, if she has any specific books that represent homosexual families.  Instantly, A. Front told me that that they used to have one book, but it was pulled from the shelf (A. Front, personal communication, January 20, 2013).  She went to the shelves and found the book, “Uncle Bobby’s Wedding” by Sarah Brannen.  Quickly, A. Front informed me that I could look at the book quickly, but it should have been removed; a parent complained (A. Front, personal communication, January 20, 2013).  When she saw my disbelief, she told me to check the internet, because it happened in New York and made the papers.  (A. Front, personal communication, January 20, 2013).   Quickly I read the book, eager to get home to see what this scandal was all about.  The book is about 2 male guinea pigs, Bobby and Jamie, who are getting married.  Bobby’s niece, Chloe, wonders if she will still be Uncle Bobby’s favorite niece once he is married.  Definitely, the message of homosexuality is shown in a positive light, and the author meshes that nicely with Chloe’s feelings. 
            Believe it or not, I did find the article; can you even believe this?  “A local resident complained about the content of the book in September 2012; the book was pulled from the shelf, although the Director of the Brentwood Library has yet to decide whether to permanently remove the book from the library’s circulation” (Seth, 2012, para. 1).  There were similar articles, including mention of a similar situation in another library in July 2007.  I was curious as to what happened to the book.  I called the Brentwood Library, and the book is no longer available from the library.  Guess that says it all!
            With all of this said, what would I say to a parent who did not want a similar book in an early childhood classroom.  I would explain the need to promote diversity in their classrooms; parents need to understand why this is important.  If teachers hand choose the family structures that they will discuss, a child will definitely be left out.  I admit to not feeling this way previously, but I think this book has as much right to be on a classroom shelf as a book depicting 2-white parents or 1-black mother or… I even really liked that the author chose to use animals, rather than a particular race.  If the book is in a preschool classroom, it is not stating that same-sex marriage is the ‘right’ thing, but it is an option and a reality in our world.  Children do, in fact, live in families with 2-moms or 2-dads.  It is our job to make these children feel safe, rather than different.  In a taped interview (Laureate Education, Inc., 2010), T. Reynolds shared that her family never talked about homosexuality.  I believe that this is the case in many preschools, too.  However, is a little girl living happily in a family with 2-dads any less important, or valuable, than a little girl living happily in a family with heterosexual parents.  I do not think so. 

 Laureate Education, Inc. (Producer).  (2010).  Learning from another’s life story (Video webcast). In EDUC 6357 Diversity, development, and learning.  Retrieved from http://mym.cdn.laureate-media.com/2dett4d/Walden/EDUC/6357/CH/mm/audio_player/index_week3.html

 Seth, J. (2012). Book pulled from library shelves: Follow-up story and interview with author.  St. Louis Community Activism Examiner.  Retrieved from http://www.examiner.com/article/book-pulled-from-library-follow-up-story-and-interview-with-author