PALM BAY, FLORIDA — An English teacher in Central Florida has started a non-profit to make sure students can read books banned at school libraries, including those that include sketches of oral sex and provide instructions on how to use the homosexual hookup app Grindr. Bayside High School English teacher Adam Tritt launched a GoFundMe page in March to support the endeavor, which has turned into the nonprofit Foundation 451.
“If Brevard [County] has removed it, I will make it available, getting as many as I can into as many hands as I can,” Tritt wrote about the non-profit. As of Thursday morning, the GoFundMe had raised over $32,000 toward a goal of $80,000.
CELEBRATING THIS BOOK IS GAY
One of the most popular books at Foundation 451 book distributions is This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson, posts on the GoFundMe page reveal. The book, which is available to middle school students, features instructions on anal sex and hookup apps, among other obscene topics.
In the chapter “Ins and Outs of Gay Sex,” This Book is Gay features cartoon sketches of a naked man with facial and pubic hair to help provide young readers with guidance on best practices for sexual encounters. The diagram includes directional arrows pointing to the man’s penis, testicles, “bum” and nipples with instructions on good “blowies” and “handies.”
In the section that details how sex apps like Grindr work, Dawson writes: “It is a fact that that although grown-up adult types are sometimes looking for a serious relationship, sometimes they are just looking for a spot of sexyfuntime.” He goes on to say, “Remember, this is fine as long as you’re honest and always use a condom.”
After a distribution at a local Juneteenth event, Tritt wrote that the “best part” of his day was seeing a 10th grader take home a copy of This Book is Gay.
Gender Queer is another book that Tritt is eager to distribute. Author Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns, gives a personal account of “what it means to be nonbinary and asexual.” The book also includes explicit illustrations depicting oral sex, masturbation and gay men engaging in sexual activity.
FUTURE GOALS FOR FOUNDATION 451
As the funds continue to come in, Tritt hopes to create a library on wheels that he plans to call the “Banned Wagon.” Foundation 451 committee member Craig Smith told Fox News that the "Banned Wagon" would require parental consent for anyone under 16 requesting the sensitive titles. Additionally, students 16 and up would be required to show ID.
These age-restrictions do not apply to Foundation 451’s Little Free (Banned Book) Libraries, which are unsupervised mailbox-style containers typically placed on sidewalks along neighborhood streets. A child of any age could grab one or more of these books. At least one Little Free Library has already been stocked up with a copy of This Book is Gay, a photo on the GoFundMe page revealed.
In addition to setting up a table at local community events, Tritt has spoken at several churches.
“I want to see the suicide rate of LGBTQ kids come down,” he told an audience at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Brevard. “I want them to be able to come to our tables and say, even if they have to whisper it, ‘I need this.’”
Tritt added, “We want kids who are questioning who they are to be able to pick up a book and read.”
