Author of challenged book coming to Central Bucks School District to speak at board meeting

Another renowned author of a challenged book in the Central Bucks School District will be making a stop in Doylestown for Tuesday’s school board meeting.

Jean Kwok’s 2010 debut novel “Girl in Translation” is one of at least 60 titles challenged under a library policy passed in a 6-3 vote last summer targeting alleged sexually explicit content.

Kwok had previously confirmed that she would provide a statement for former school board member Tracy Suits to read on her behalf as Kwok was scheduled to give a talk at Florida State University next week.

“I'm doing this because I feel like I am in a strong enough position to be someone who can stand up and talk about this and to say, 'Listen, while the instinct (to protect children) may be commendable, what you're actually doing is something that is atrocious and very dangerous.’ ”

Kwok, who currently lives in the Netherlands, is still giving the talk in Florida, but she said Wednesday that she’s decided to reroute her flight to be at the board meeting.

The book tells the story of a young girl who emigrated with her mother from China to Brooklyn, New York, and lives a double life as a student by day and a sweatshop worker at night to help support her family.

Kwok said her fictional novel pulls heavily from her own childhood.

Her coming-of-age story has been used in middle and high school classrooms and in universities across the country for its examination of immigrant life in America.

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According to BookLooks.org, a website of “graphic” or obscene books organized by the national conservative group Moms For Liberty, Kwok’s book includes “sexual activities; sexual nudity; mild/infrequent profanity; alcohol and drug use by minors; and abortion commentary.”

All of the book challenges that began flooding into Central Bucks in January appear on BookLooks, according to a report from WHYY.

Kwok described herself as a “fade-to-black” author when it comes to writing about sexual situations, saying “it seems insane to make these accusations against this novel if you have read it.”

Kwok also noted that the character who considers getting an abortion doesn’t go through with the procedure.

A search of Central Bucks’ online library catalog shows that “Girl in Translation” has multiple copies in the district’s three high schools and one copy in Tohickon Middle School.

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Suits told the USA Today Network Wednesday afternoon that she was "excited and truly honored" that Kwok will be coming to the district next week.

"Students of all backgrounds have been vocal in public comment for over two years about the importance of representation in the curriculum and their reading materials. I cannot think of a better way to honor and respect our immigrant and Asian American and Pacific Islander students than to have the author of "Girl In Translation" in our board room speaking for herself and her book," Suits said.

Kwok will be the second author of a challenged book to address the board directly this year.

Laurie Halse Anderson, whose 2019 memoir “Shout” about her own experience being raped at 13, made a surprise appearance at the March 14 meeting to protest her memoir and many other books being under review.

“Most of you on this school board want to ban my latest book, ‘Shout,’ along with 64 other books that examine things that make you feel uncomfortable or that you feel are inappropriate,” the author and Upper Dublin, Montgomery County, resident said at the meeting.

Anderson cited 2021 statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that about 41% of high school girls and boys have been the victim of sexual violence.

“Not talking about sexual violence or healthy, consent-based sexuality pulls all that and puts it underneath a lid. Our children are already hurt, they need us to have the courage to talk about the hard things; to make a safe place for them to say what happened to them,” Anderson said.

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Central Bucks officials have vehemently denied accusations that Policy 109.2 is a book ban and that accusations that the district is trying to silence marginalized voices is a lie meant to further divide the community.

The district is currently under a federal investigation stemming from a 72-page complaint of LGBTQ discrimination filed in October on behalf of seven students by the ACLU of PA.

Policy 109.2 and another policy banning “advocacy” through political discussions or displays, like flags or banners, were mentioned in the ACLU complaint.

Leaked documents provided by a source in the district to the USA Today Network in Pennsylvania revealed that Central Bucks used a religious liberty group, the Independence Law Center, to review and draft the administrative regulations governing the library policy.

The Independence Law Center is part of the Pennsylvania Family Institute, a state chapter of the national Family Research Council — designated as an anti-LGBTQ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

The district has not posted an agenda for the April 11 meeting online as of Wednesday afternoon.

The school board meetings are typically held at 7 p.m. in the administration building at 16 Welden Drive.

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Jean Kwok to speak at Central Bucks board meeting over book challenge