What is the Rainbow Parade book? Penfield Central School District parents clash with board in viral video over elementary students reading material

Representational image (Image via Unsplash/@Susan Q Yin)
Representational image (Image via Unsplash/@Susan Q Yin)

A video showing the parents of Penfield Central School District clashing with the board over their kids being read to from the Rainbow Parade book is going viral.

As reported by News10NBC, the meeting was held on Tuesday in Rochester, New York, though following intense commotion, the Penfield Central School District board members decided to walk out of the packed house of parents altogether.

The book, written by Emily Neilson, chronicles the journey of a young girl attending a pride parade with her parents, who are lesbians. Images in the book depict nudity, drag queens, BDSM gear, and more. The book is described on Amazon as "a joyful and affirming picture book about a family's first Pride parade."

The book's full description on Amazon reads:

"One day in June, Mommy, Mama, and Emily take the train into the city to watch the Rainbow Parade. The three of them love how all the people in the street are so loud, proud, and colorful, but when Mama suggests they join the parade, Emily feels nervous. Standing on the sidewalkis one thing, but walking in the parade? Surely that takes something special. This joyful and affirming picture book about a family's first Pride parade, reminds all readers that sometimes pride takes practice and there's no "one way" to be a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Everything to know about the incident at Penfield Central School District's board meeting

In the video, concerned parents can be heard demanding answers as to why such material was approved in the first place. However, Kimberly DeRosa, who was at the meeting, told The Daily Wire that it ended after over an hour of presentations celebrating Black History Month and the superintendent detailing the process of submitting objections to books in the school.

DeRosa also added that the Penfield Central School District board told parents that they had to submit their complaints beforehand, which seemingly stripped the parents of their right to speak up at the meeting.

As reported by News10NBC, John Feathers, one of the parents, stated,

“If you think that that’s appropriate for children to see, then there’s something wrong with you. You need to have a mental evaluation. There’s no reason that should be in the schools whatsoever at all. You can see the guy’s b*tt is clearly out,” he said, pointing at a picture of the book. “And then if you go over on this side of the picture, there’s two guys standing in bondage right there,” Feathers explained.

However, Dr. Emily Roberts, who is the president of the Penfield Central School District board, said,

“We have the policy in place. The procedures in place to object [to learning materials]," before parents began jeering.

DeRosa told The Daily Wire that the incident was

“A slap in the face to everyone there when the board members walked out before any public comments could be made.”

Parents claim that the book is not only available in the library for learners as young as kindergarten. According to parents, the book is also available on display, seemingly, to pique the attention of the learners.

“Moving forward, we want to see all s*xually-explicit material and dangerous ideology removed from schools,” DeRosa told The Daily Wire. “Our children deserve a quality education and healthy learning environment. We, as a community, are more united than ever,” she continued. “We were the majority for the first time here.”

She also revealed that parents are now gearing up to "vote for new school board members in May,” adding that the candidates of their liking were present at Tuesday’s meeting.

Edited by Priscillah Mueni
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