Bergen County parents take stand against Oradell BOE for canceling appearance by author
Sell's books are mainly for kids ages 8 to 12. They display some LGBTQIA-related themes, like a boy with a same-sex crush and a boy who dresses as a female sorceress.
Parents in Bergen County took a stand against the Oradell Board of Education, which voted to cancel an appearance from author Chad Sell, who writes children's books with some LGBTQIA+ related themes.
Every year, the PTA sponsors a reading event for kids within the district. Chad Sell, author of the “Cardboard Kingdom,” was invited to attend.
After the board voted to cancel Sell's appearance, dozens of parents showed up to Wednesday’s board meeting to convince the board to approve it...and it worked. The board voted unanimously to allow Sells to become one of the featured authors.
"I'm very happy that all the authors will be able to come and show the kids how to be creative and how to be open-minded, and I'm very excited to see what my son says about the authors coming to visit," said Anne Marie Spiegel, whose son is in kindergarten.
Sell's books are mainly for kids ages 8 to 12. They display some LGBTQIA-related themes, like a boy with a same-sex crush and a boy who dresses as a female sorceress.
But the stories are mainly about creativity and diversity.
Sell was previously canceled from a visit at a school in Connecticut due to the content in his books.
Parents say at first, they weren't getting a clear answer as to why the board wouldn't allow Sells to visit, but after parents made it clear that the content of his books were appropriate for their students, the entire board voted to approve the appearance.
