A queer activist and a drag queen have joined forces to bring a mobile LGBT library across America as part of an expansive book tour.
The idea behind the tour is that it will bring LGBT-inspired books to areas of the country where they believe book banning has occurred the most, primarily in K-12 settings and youth centers in the south, according to rainbowbookbus.org. At each stop along the way, the drivers brought a “queer book fair,” per an Instagram post by the Rainbow Book Bus.
The first version of the bus was the bookstore called ShopQueer and later the e-commerce LGBT bookstore Allstora, both of which were started by gay activist and author Eric Cervini as well as actor and drag performer Adam Powell, according to The Tallahassee Democrat.
Now, they are the founders of the Rainbow Book Bus as they take the store on the road intending to hand out 10,000 of such books, the outlet added.
Allstora, an e-commerce platform with a wholesale membership model, promises to split profits with authors and offer books at steep discounts. The company’s philanthropic arm, the Rainbow Book Bus, will distribute diverse titles across the country. https://t.co/pbqxo0fF8E
— Publishers Weekly (@PublishersWkly) March 4, 2024
“We must fight censorship and attempts to reduce young people’s access to inclusive stories,” co-founder Powell said in a statement, per the Democrat. “[A]nd our colorful and joyful bus loaded with amazing books is an antidote to hate and discrimination.”
“The Rainbow Book Bus aims to promote and protect access to representative books and media for queer communities and anyone impacted by anti-inclusive legislation,” per its website.
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The bus kicked off the tour Monday and left from Los Angeles, California.
In total, the bus will make 7 stops across the south, including Atlanta, Baton Rouge, Birmingham, Phoenix, Memphis, San Antonio and Tallahassee, according to social media posts in support of the Rainbow Book Bus.
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The tour will head to the south, and then to the Midwest and Great Plains, the Democrat reported.
Famed drag queen Ru Paul touted his affiliation with the Rainbow Book Bus Tuesday night on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. While he is not going to be driving the bus throughout the tour, the star will make an appearance at its Atlanta stop and claims he had driven the brightly-colored bus before. (RELATED: RuPaul Uses Emmys Speech To Defend Drag Queen Story Hours)
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Some of the titles aboard the Rainbow Bus include “Granddad’s Pride,” “Lesbian Love Story,” “Bad Gays” and “The Ethical Slut,” per a separate Instagram video from inside the rig. (RELATED: ‘That’s Actually A Very Good Book’: Liberal Commentator Defends Kids Books Depicting Graphic Sex Acts)
Initially, the Rainbow Book Bus made its official debut at the L.A. Pride Parade as well as at some West Coast book fairs starting in 2022, the Democrat noted.