Ban on Same-Sex Parenting Book for Kids Overturned Amid Protests

Protesters on both sides of the debate gathered outside Cumberland City Council as the decision was made.

Protesters and counter-protesters gather outside the Cumberland City Council to voice their views on the bans on an LGBT book and drag story time in Sydney, Australia, on May 15, 2024. AAP Image/Paul Braven

Protesters gathered outside a four-hour Cumberland City Council meeting where a decision to ban same-sex parenting books from the region’s libraries was ultimately rescinded.

On May 1, a small majority of western Sydney councillors led by Granville Ward councillor Steve Christou voted to ban the book “Same-Sex Parents” by Holly Duhig from Cumberland’s libraries.

The book had, according to Mr. Christou, been in the toddler section and parents had lodged complaints with the council.

The move resulted in New South Wales Arts Minister John Graham threatening to pull funding from the library service.

At a meeting held to discuss the banning of the book as part of the council’s general meeting on Wednesday night, the decision was overturned.

Protesters against the ban held up rainbow flags and signs reading “hate is not a family value” as they chanted into megaphones “we’re here, we’re queer.”

Protesters in favour of the book ban also gathered outside the council chambers. Earlier in the week, Mr. Christou had posted a video calling for people to attend and express their concerns peacefully.

A number of councillors changed their mind on the ban they had initially supported, while some who hadn’t been present in the earlier meeting took to voting.

Initially, Councillors Christou, Helen Hughes, Greg Cummings, Mohamad Hussein, Paul Garrad, and Michael Zaiter had been in favour of the ban, while councillors Diane Colman, Kun Huang, Lisa Lake, Greg Cummings, Glenn Elmore, and Suman Saha had been against.

Councillors Sabrin Farooqui, Joseph Rahme and Eddy Sarkins were not present on the initial vote, while Ola Hamed did not vote.

On Wednesday night, only Mr. Sarkins and Mr. Christou stuck to the original vote to ban the book. All other councillors voted to bring the book back. Mr. Rahme was again not present.

Councillor Hussein, who changed his mind at the last minute, told the meeting he could not uphold his vote against the book, according to the ABC.

He cited working with LGBT groups and said he would not enforce his beliefs on others.

“This is not a war on you guys, and it is not a war on myself,” he said.

Mr. Christou and Mr. Garrad attempted to amend the new motion to have the book moved to the adult section of the library but were unsuccessful.

Mr. Christou uploaded a video to social media earlier this week saying the decision to ban the book had been made according to “family and religious values” that aligned with the Cumberland community.

The Book Behind the Controversy

The book that will now be back on Cumberland library shelves, in the junior non-fiction section, is a glossy, colour book featuring stock images of both heterosexual and homosexual families, though more so the latter.

The cover image features two young men and a young boy, will an illustration of two women with a little girl.

It includes a section called “making a family” with more stock photos of gay couples.

“There are lots of ways of welcoming a baby into a family and lots of ways of becoming parents. Some same sex parents become parents by having their own child while others might adopt a child,” the book says.

The book then goes on to talk about surrogacy, with a quote from a young girl talking about how a “nice lady” had helped her parents.

It also features narratives around how “dads can plait hair too” and what children might call two parents of the same sex.

Themes inside the book also include bullying and grandparents who might disapprove of their children’s lifestyles.