30+ Celebrities Fight Book Bans By Supporting LGBTQ+ Nonprofit's Online Auction

The nonprofit group Pride and Less Prejudice is holding its third annual Banned Together virtual auction between October 5-8. The organization is looking to raise $15,000 to send more than 1,000 LGBTQ-inclusive books to elementary schools across the country.

This year’s auction features a variety of donations from actor Neil Patrick Harris, fashion designer Christian Siriano, performer Frankie James Grande, singer Hayley Kiyoko, actor Daniel Radcliffe, tennis legend Billie Jean King, actress Sally Field, singer Melissa Etheridge, drag queen Latrice Royale, and many more.

Pride and Less Prejudice — also known as PLP — was founded in 2019 and looks to provide queer-themed books to pre-K through third-grade classes. In a release, the group said it raised more than $175,000 and donated more than 10,000 books to classrooms in all 50 states.

“In 2022, the American Library Association saw book bans reach a high point, almost doubling from 2021, and LGBTQ+ books were the most targeted,” said Lisa Forman, Pride and Less Prejudice’s founder. “Young kids deserve to see themselves and their families represented in schools, and that’s why PLP’s work to send LGBTQ-inclusive books to teachers is more important than ever.”

Related: 11 Most Banned Books by Schools So Far This Year

"As a child growing up in Compton, I had little to no resources or access to materials that reflected the life I was living, or the life that I couldn’t even imagine I would be living today,” Latrice Royale, one of the donors to the auction, said. “Making sure that students everywhere can have access to reading materials that show not only what is possible, but what is already happening in society, must remain at the top of our priority list.”

She added, “I sincerely wish I had been able to see diversity of all kinds represented in the books I had in school, so that I could have known I was ok, loveable, and not alone, as every child deserves to feel.”

"I am excited to donate an original sketch to the Pride and Less Prejudice virtual auction and support their work to send LGBTQ+ books to elementary schools," said Christian Siriano. "Spotlighting the lack of LGBTQ+ representation in the classroom is important and there’s no better time to do so than during Banned Books Week."

Canadian singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright echoed the importance of providing youth with stories about LGBTQ+ people.

“Pride and Less Prejudice lets kids know that they are not alone, and I'm glad to stand with them. Children deserve to feel accepted, not to have to fight for acceptance. Having LGBTQ books in the classroom allows kids to see their inner worlds reflected around them, and not have to deal with the same obstacles that I faced," Wainwright said.

This year’s auction items include:

• A pair of concert tickets with a post-show meet and greet from Rufus Wainwright
• A pair of tickets to see Melissa Etheridge in her Broadway show My Window
• A pair of tickets to see Frankie James Grande in the off-Broadway show Titanique
• A pair of tickets to Jinkx Monsoon and BenDeLaCreme’s Holiday Tour, as well as a photo opportunity
• Signed and personalized merch from Lily Tomlin, Jane Wagner, and Elvira
• A signed original sketch from Christian Siriano
• Personalized video messages from Nicole Maines, Frankie James Grande, Ilana Glazer, Brooke Lynn Hytes, Latrice Royale, Harvey Guillén, Chris Colfer, Lance Bass, Leo Sheng, and Desmond is Amazing
• Signed books from Neil Patrick Harris, Billie Jean King, Melissa Etheridge, Sally Field, Idina Menzel, Adam Rippon, Alan Cumming, Tim Gunn, Hayley Kiyoko, Lisa Ann Walter, and Chris Colfer
• Signed photo from Daniel Radcliffe
• Signed Wynonna Earp collectibles from Kat Barrell
• Signed ukulele from Ingrid Michaelson
• A Zoom hangout with Jess Darrow.

Check out Pride and Less Prejudice’s auction by going to the link right here.