Context
Newman wrote Heather Has Two Mommies at the suggestion of a lesbian mother who wanted a book that represented a family like hers. Although many see Heather as a progressive book aiming to normalize LGBT+ families, Newman did not write this book to further her political agenda. Rather, she wrote this book for children of same-sex parents who had trouble identifying themselves in children’s media (Fairyington). Nonetheless, Heather was revolutionary for teaching acceptance of homosexuality to younger audiences.
While Heather was well received by lesbian mothers, the book was heavily criticized by conservatives for exposing young children to homosexuality and for normalizing same-sex couples. These people were afraid that their children would accept homosexuality or possibly “turn gay” if they were exposed to media such as Heather that depicted non-heterosexual relationships. Parents attempted to remove books from schools and libraries by challenging them; the American Library Association listed Heather Has Two Mommies as the 9th most challenged book between 1990 and 1999 (Kellogg).
Their hatred was further enraged when the “Children of the Rainbow” curriculum was proposed in 1992. This program aimed to introduce 1st graders to books featuring people of different races and backgrounds, recommending Heather to introduce same-sex families to children. If this program was successful, it would raise the next generation to be more accepting of others who are different. Unfortunately, this curriculum was not accepted by many communities as can be seen in the article from The Empty Closet, a newspaper in New York City catering to an LGBT+ audience. Although gay families were only a small percentage of family types being taught about through the curriculum, school boards dismissed the entire program as they felt it contained “'instruction in alternative lifestyles and non-traditional family units’” (Associated Press).
The issue of Heather’s audience even made it onto the Senate floor in 1994 when republican Senator Bob Smith read Heather Has Two Mommies, along with other children’s books featuring homosexual parents, while decrying the loss of morals in children’s literature. This speech argued for Sen. Smith’s amendment to the Elementary and Secondary Schools Act (in collaboration with Sen. Jesse Helms) which would cut funding to schools that taught "programs supporting homosexual activities”. Although the amendment passed, it was countered by a democratic amendment which limited all sexual content in lower grade curriculums, therefore, lessening the impact of Sen. Smith’s amendment.
Despite the restrictions on the availability of children’s books depicting homosexual people at the time, authors and artists continued to publish works younger marginalized audiences could identify themselves in. The underground comic book Gay Comix was published between 1980 and 1988, by gay and lesbian writers and artists. The comics depicted the non-sexual, everyday side of LGBT+ teens and young adults, rather than the stereotyped caricatures portrayed in popular media at the time. While younger children may not have encountered LGBT+ people in literature, older adolescents could identify themselves in gay media targeted at younger people. Like Newman, the authors of Gay Comix may not have written for a younger audience to push a liberal political agenda, but the mere existence of LGBT+ youth media worked to teach acceptance and validity.