By AlaskaWatchman.com

A March 23-24 book fair at Teeland Middle School in Wasilla featured books celebrating gay teen romance, LGBTQ activism, queer fantasy and transgender sexual identity.

Held in the 6th-through-8th grade school library, the event took place during school hours, as well as before and after school.

The event was jointly hosted by Fireside Bookstore, a Palmer-based business that partners with LGBTQ activist groups to promote transgenderism and homosexuality among Mat-Su youth.

A Teeland student took photos of several books which were on display for children to peruse. These included the following titles:

— “In Deeper Waters,” by F.T. Lukens: This book features a bisexual boy and his romantic same-sex partner who fall in love while on a high seas adventure.

— “This is Our Rainbow,” edited by Katherine Locke and Nicole Melleby: This is billed as the first “LGBTQ+ anthology for middle-graders.” It features LGBTQ characters who experience their first kiss, coming out parties, same sex crushes, non-binary heroes and queer fantasies.

— “The Stonewall Riots,” by Gale Pitman: This book glorifies the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York, in which violent LGBTQ rioters are credited with igniting the LGBTQ+ political agenda.

Parents were allowed to attend the event, but not required.

Teeland Middle School Principal Jo Ann Hinds

Teeland Principal Jo Ann Hinds said the school advertised the book fair, but did not mention that the event would contain LGBTQ-themed books. She added that parental permission was not required for students to attend the fair or purchase books.

“I do think, though, it’s important to know kids had an option, whether or not they go and look at the book fair books,” Hind said. “So if kids don’t want to go look at them, they don’t have to.”

According to Alaska Statute, a school must provide parent notification “not less than two weeks before any activity, class, or program that includes content involving human reproduction or sexual matters is provided to a child.” The law also emphasizes that parents have a right to “review the content of these activities or programs before they are offered to their child. While a book fair may not technically be part of the curriculum, it may well be considered an activity that is facilitated and provided by the school.

TAKING ACTION

— Contact Teeland Middle School Principal Jo Ann Hinds at JOANN.HINDS@MATSUK12.US or (907) 352-7507.

— Contact Teeland librarian Christine Zahrt at CHRISTINE.ZAHRT@MATSUK12.US or (907) 352-7526.

— Contact Mat-Su Schools Superintendent Randy Trani at Randy.Trani@matsu12.us or (907) 746-9255.

— Click here to contact the Mat-Su Borough School Board.

Click here to support Alaska Watchman reporting.

Mat-Su school book fair features gay romance, coming out, queer fantasy books

Joel Davidson
Joel is Editor-in-Chief of the Alaska Watchman. Joel is an award winning journalist and has been reporting for over 24 years, He is a proud father of 8 children, and lives in Palmer, Alaska.


55 Comments

  • Elizabeth Henry says:

    Middle school children are still under the needed care of their parents or other legal caregivers. This is unconscionable. Zero protection of children in the public school system even in a supposedly conservative community. The principal should be fired.

  • Lucinda says:

    Pearls meet clutch. People loving other people in ways different from rigid christian restrictions on freedom!

  • Dominique says:

    So proud of the valley and this principal!! Way to be apart of the future!

  • Endtimes says:

    the collapse of society

    • Lucinda says:

      Endtimes: THIS is the collapse of society? Have you followed the MAGA efforts pushed by Trump? Our union is irreparably fractured because of the diminishment of democracy, attacks on the election system, lies and hypocrisy accepted without retribution, silly culture wars. And of course overpopulation, international war, climate change, loss of habitat and pollution. THOSE are threats to society, not books about same-sex love.

      • Ceak says:

        you’re living in a delusion.

      • Tamra Nygaard says:

        Oh Lucinda, we do not have a democracy, we have a representative republic. Attacks on the election system come from the ballot stuffers and Dominion cheaters. Lies and hypocrisy are the stuff in trade of the “progressives” who are progressing… who knows where, but it’s hot there. Silly culture wars are things like telling girls they can be boys and vice versa. Overpopulation? Are you starving or even close to it? Climate change: do tell me, what is the perfect temperature of the “earth” and how do you measure that, exactly? Loss of habitat for…. whom? Pollution? Where were you in the late ’60s and early ’70s? Got any more straw men to parade about with? We aren’t quite that stupid, dear.

      • jon says:

        exactly this. Trump would have a dictatorship if it was up to him.

      • Friend of Humanity says:

        jon, the Trump Derangement Syndrome is popping up again. What is wrong? Do you feel like your side is losing so you need to start bashing and name-calling again? Trump wins 2024. Truth wins in the end.

  • Ellen Dees says:

    This makes my blood boil! Enough of this garbage, we must stand up and fight for our kids folks! I don’t understand how they are getting away with this!

  • micah6v8 says:

    Excellent reporting . Thank you for leaning in Joel.

  • Giovani says:

    everyone responding needs to grow up, get over yourselves, let kids read what they’re gonna read, sunlight is the best disinfectant… more info is better than less info!

    • Bill Waters says:

      You see Giovani, protecting and being the guardian of our children, IS what grown-ups do. It is not unto thenschoolntonbe exposing children tonsexual content. You notice how ALL non-hetrosexual books amd themes are only about romantic love and sex? it’s because that us the only thing the singles them out. Sunlight disinfecting is a tool BY parents to shine unit the administration. I don’t think you are old enough to even have kids, you certainly don’t sound like a parent with experience.

      • jon says:

        If you ban a book the children will flock to it, find it at the library or bookstore and read. Your kids know far more than you think they do.

    • Tamra Nygaard says:

      Providing pornography to minors is illegal. Just because this happens at school instead of on a street corner does not make it any more legal. Perhaps it is you who should get over it. And stay the hell away from my kid.

    • Endtimes says:

      kids don’t have proper discernment at that age. It’s grooming.

      • jon says:

        Weren’t you ever a middle schooler? Kids are going to read about sex whether you like it or not. In my day it was Candy, which was really pornographic compared to these titles.

    • North to Alaska says:

      Groomer

  • Bill Waters says:

    Auto type and intuitive word correct is horrible on Androids. I apologize for the several typos in my previous post.

  • DaveMaxwell says:

    I’m supporting goofy for governor, we got him
    Response: oh gee thanks ,now what do I do
    Agenda: woke budget broke ( pay raises)
    Agenda: green new tea ( carbon sugar $?) in the tea? Wonder what Francis meant by this? I’ll have to call him tomorrow, that’s enough for this day!!!!! I’m tired!

  • Mary says:

    Congratulation to Uganda for recently passing a law against this “gay” agenda. Punishable by imprisonment yet the U.S. is,crying foul.

    • Friend of Humanity says:

      I just saw an article talking about this. Good for Uganda! How can Alaska always be nearly the last one to get the news and act on it? Just amazing that we can watch it happen everywhere else; then, when it happens here, we are so complacent.
      Oh, that is it – get us conditioned to just accept it. Come on Alaskans – WE HAVE TO STAND UP AGAINST THIS EVIL!

  • Mary says:

    Just passed U.S., “Parents Bill of Rights,”. So don’t think you have no rights over your child’s education

    • jon says:

      The Republican led House passed it, no Democrat voted for it. This trash will never pass the Senate, and if perhaps it does, President Biden will veto it.

  • Dalton Stokes says:

    it shows how dead this country is that y’all will do absolutely nothing about it

  • Jennifer says:

    The World Health Organization has published a document for eduacational authorities in Europe to teach “early childhood masterbation” and normalize sexuality among toddlers. https://www.icmec.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/WHOStandards-for-Sexuality-Ed-in-Europe.pdf It really made my stomach turn. I couldn’t even read it all. If you want to see something really sick, look up the WHO’s Standards for Sexual Education. You might have to try different browsers! Google says it doesn’t exist, but I opened it with Microsoft Edge. How soon will this be acceptable in our country?

    • Lucinda says:

      You seem to be preoccupied by sex.

      • Friend of Humanity says:

        Lucinda, Jennifer is pointing out what the lefties, globalists and demonrats are possessed with. By the Grace of Our Heavenly Father, we will save our children from all these sickophant attacks on them.

      • Tamra Nygaard says:

        And yet, who is it that is grooming kids for abuse?

      • jon says:

        These people are consumed with sex. they have forgotten that middle schoolers want to know about sex. If fact some of them are probably having it. They are trying to protect their children in the worst way possible.

      • Friend of Humanity says:

        jon, if a child has a healthy relationship with our Heavenly Father, if the child is kept busy with wholesome activities that keep in line with our Heavenly Father’s wishes and commandments, if the parents are involved in the child’s life, there is ample support to help the child to keep walking on the straight and narrow path. Yes, hormones do kick in; but, this is where having a healthy relationship with our Heavenly Father and studying God’s Word helps young people to choose their activities and friends wisely. When they become adults, they’ll be on their own and hopefully, their relationship with our Heavenly Father is strong and they will continue to live in a manner that shows their respect and love for our Heavenly Father.

  • MW says:

    Our family recently chose not to participate in an event at Teeland for this very reason. Our family also stopped shopping at Fireside Books when they started bringing liberal filth like this particular topic into a conservative town bookstore. Homeschool your kids. Don’t shop at Fireside. It’s that simple. Or, take swift action and ask the school district and Randy Tranni why they are allowing Fireside Books to use a school district library platform as a main-stage for their muck. They allowed this at Mat Su Central and a few other schools recently too. Whatever happened to good ol Scholastic and conservative educational books?! Someone at Fireside Books must have a friend in a high place to even have been allowed that opportunity. Only reputable curricula reps with a history and profession in education should be allowed through any school doors to sell any reading material to students.

  • Mary says:

    Wonder how much Fireside Books profits off of these school book sales?

  • Lucinda says:

    Tamra. You’ve defined your world, established weird claims that you take as fact and then you apply those standards to others and become upset. For example, you think drag shows are a way to groom kids for abuse, but that is simply not true. Drag shows are just silly. But your delusional definitions override evidence and you squawk.

    Same with you response to my earlier comment about pollution etc. You dismiss very real and very deadly problems in favor of focusing on trivial culture war crap.

    • Penny Johnson says:

      Drag shows for children are indoctrination to normalize deviant sexual proclivities. It’s as simple as that. From Daily Wire: “According to a controversial 2021 Barna poll, nearly 40% of Gen Z describes themselves as being somewhere on the LGBTQ spectrum. A 2021 Gallup poll cuts that number in half but still notes the upsurge in numbers: “Roughly 21% of Generation Z Americans who have reached adulthood – those born between 1997 and 2003 – identify as LGBT. That is nearly double the proportion of Millennials who do so, while the gap widens when compared with older generations.” This is a social contagion, children don’t have the awareness that they’re being manipulated, nor the life experience to make these choices at such an impressionable age. Kids don’t even know what they want for dinner. Yours is a ridiculous argument.

      • Lucinda says:

        Penny. A question for you. Please define in explicit detail what is NOT deviant “sexual proclivities”. I think we’d all benefit from the standards and boundaries you could provide. Here’s some prompts: is oral sex ok and if so, with whom? Are costumes and lingerie acceptable? Are there sounds and words spoken during a sexual encounter that are NOT acceptable to you? Please help.

  • Anon says:

    Lots of satans foot soldiers out tonite

  • Matthew says:

    One question and one question only!
    Who’s job is it to enforce existing state statute?
    I take issue with the public educational system promoting such material without proper notification. What is equally if not more troubling, is the failure of the administration to administer/enforce existing statute. Let’s get our own house in order before criticizing others. A house divided
    against itself cannot stand.

    • DaveMaxwell says:

      The answer ultimately Matthew is our governor and his AG! We now live in chaos because of our leaders not doing their job!

  • S says:

    You’re disgusting.

  • DaveMaxwell says:

    How dare you!!! Lowlife

  • George says:

    Homosexuality is immoral and a sin. You people pushing this on our children are sick perverts. You don’t belong anywhere near a school.

    • Lucinda says:

      George. By what standard are gays immoral?

      • Friend of Humanity says:

        Lucinda, you have made comments on other topics referring to the bible. You sound like you know something about God’s Word, so why do not you tell us why being gay is immoral?

      • Mb says:

        Love the person Hate the sin. Yes being gay, transgender, lesbian is a sin. Before returning coment please do a little reading. By the way Trans shows are not “just being silly” it’s sick and perverted.

  • Lucinda says:

    Friend. I think I’ve expressed this before that I am an atheist. Not agnostic, not questioning (done with that phase). How can I speak to “God’s word” if I believe he does not exist?

    Being gay is not immoral, it’s just different from me and you. Big deal. I’m an archaeologist, I’ll bet you aren’t. Big deal. Am I to be marginalized by Uber Christians like you? Am I immoral because I don’t see the supernatural in the archaeological (and geological record)? Are you immoral because your faith teaches anti-science?

    The Right promotes freedom and liberty. How about ensuring freedom and liberty for all of us, not just you?

    • Friend of Humanity says:

      Lucinda, why do you paraphrase and quote from the bible when you choose to, but won’t I ask you about a topic?

      • Friend of Humanity says:

        Sorry, let me correct the second part: but you won’t when I ask you about a topic?

      • Lucinda says:

        Friend. I’m no expert in biblical studies, believe me. You seem to be, so I’ll yield to your expertise.

  • Lucinda says:

    Mb: there’s a bunch of beliefs I dislike, Christianity being one of them. Your bible insists on indefensible moral proclamations like, as you wrote, “ being gay, transgender, lesbian is a sin“. First, I reject the notion of sin – that’s a clever and devious way for you to be controlled by someone something else. Second, your obsession with what others do with their naughty bits reflects more on you, than them. It really gets down to the specifics of the sexual experience. You say it’s “sick and perverted”. EXACTLY what is sick and perverted? Is it oral sex? Anal sex? Sex outside of marriage? Race? age?

    To make your claim, I think you should define your terms. Go for it. We’re all adults here; we can handle frankness.