LGBT Book, Film & Video Blog

Daddy's Roommate was one of the first children's books to portray homosexuality in a positive light; the two men do the same things normal couples do: take care of the house, argue, and spend time with the boy. Consequently, the book has become one of the most challenged books in recent years with the American Library Association listing it at number 2 in their list of the 100 most challenged books from 1990-2000.

A New York Times interview published September 13, 2008, John Stein, former mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, described local social conservatives asking the city's library director to remove books they found to be objectionable:

"People would bring books back censored," Stein reported. "Pages would get marked up or torn out."
In the interview, Mayor Stein and Laura Chase, campaign manager during Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s first run for mayor of Wasilla in 1996, recalled that as a city council member in 1995, Ms. Palin told colleagues that she saw "Daddy’s Roommate" on the library shelf and said it didn't belong there.

Ms. Chase says she read the book, found it to be inoffensive, and suggested that Ms. Palin read it. "Sarah said she didn't need to read that stuff," Ms. Chase said. "It was disturbing that someone would be willing to remove a book from the library, and she didn't even read it."

The 2008 McCain-Palin presidential campaign released a statement stating that Republican Party vice presidential nominee Ms. Palin was not involved in censorship. But their claim has been undercut by “Americans For Truth” President Peter LaBarbera’s recent press release acknowledging Plain’s role as a censor of children’s books.

Without any awareness of irony, LaBarbera announced “Americans For Truth” will soon launch a "Library Fairness Project" to help citizens purge objectionable books from public library shelves. Failing that, the group will urge citizens to demand local libraries have “balanced collections on homosexuality.” Apparently, that means “parity between pro-homosexuality books and those opposed to the ‘gay’ movement.”

"Wasilla parents and then-Mayor Palin were right to be concerned about young children stumbling upon Daddy's Roommate in the library," he said, confirming again that Palin’s role as a censor.