Updated Saturday, Dec. 16 with additional comments by Great Barrington Police Chief Paul Storti.
Great Barrington — The town’s Police Department conducted an investigation at W.E.B. Du Bois Regional Middle School over a book. Both Berkshire Hills Regional School District Superintendent Peter Dillon and Police Chief Paul Storti confirmed the investigation to The Berkshire Edge.
According to Dillon, the book in question is “Gender Queer,” a 2019 graphic novel by Maia Kobabe. The book won an Alex Award from the American Library Association (ALA) in 2020. According to the ALA’s website, the Alex Award is given to a book “that has special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18.” The book also won a Stonewall Book Awards Israel Fishman Non-Fiction Award from the ALA in 2020. The award is “presented to English language books that have exceptional merit relating to the LGBTQIA+ experience.”
According to book publisher Simon & Schuster’s website, the autobiographical graphic novel was written “as a way to explain to their family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual.” Simon & Schuster explains, “‘Gender Queer’ is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity—what it means and how to think about it—for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere.”
In an email to members of the school district on Thursday, December 14, Dillon shared details of the police investigation over “Gender Queer.” “On Friday, [December 8], Chief [Storti] reached out to me to share that they were conducting an investigation related to a complaint about a book at the middle school,” Dillon wrote in his email. “At the end of the school day, an officer in plain clothes tried to locate that book. Principal [Miles] Wheat spoke with the officer and with the teacher and they looked for the book, but did not find it.” Dillon wrote that the anonymous complaint was referred to the Berkshire County District Attorney’s office by the Police Department.
“Gender Queer” is “not a class text but a supplemental material that students can request to sign out,” according to Dillon. “The book is a graphic novel and a memoir of a nonbinary person,” Dillon wrote. “It has won several awards and is the topic of some controversy. It depicts some images that some find offensive. At the same time, many see it as an important story helping build empathy and support for a marginalized group and helping trans or queer students make meaning.”
Dillon wrote that, while the school district has policies in place if a parent has concerns about a book, “our policies did not anticipate this situation.” Dillon explained: “In the former case, a form is completed and a reconsideration process can take place. In these types of situations, many other districts form a review committee either of the school, district, and families or of the school committee, to read and rate the book. Other districts have done so with this book and choices have been to keep it, limit it to some by age or a warning label, or to exclude it. Most in the Northeast have kept it.”
In an interview with The Berkshire Edge, Dillon said that the Police Department does not have any right to ban books used in the school district. “Book [usage] is the decision of the school committee, and the school committee often delegates [the decision] to teachers and principals,” Dillon said. “What I hope will happen is that this comes back to being a school decision, which it should be. Then we’ll go through a process to decide if it’s appropriate or not [for the school district], and at what grade level. There are a lot of conversations about whether this book should be banned. But that’s not a conversation that I am leading.”
Dillon said that the copy of “Gender Queer” in question was in a teacher’s classroom, but he did not name the teacher who had the copy of the book. “For the moment, we are unable to locate [the copy],” Dillon said. “I’ve been trying to support the teachers [in the school district]. The only thing the teacher [with the book] might have done better, just like we would in a health class for example, we give parents a heads up that we’re going to be talking about contraception. If somebody’s religious or philosophical views are such that they don’t want their child to hear about that, then they can reach out to us and have their child opt out of the class. This book wasn’t taught in the class but was a supplemental resource. If somebody wanted to use it, they could. But we didn’t allow parents to say that they didn’t want their child to use it. That’s the only change I’d make going forward.”
When asked if the Great Barrington Police Department has a right to go into the school buildings in the district to seek out a book, Dillon gave a multifaceted answer. “It’s in our interest to work with [the department] because we don’t just need them when things are good, we need them when things are bad,” Dillon said. “We meet with them a lot, and we have a good working relationship. However, I think [the department] overreached on this one [case]. If [the department] believed that the book was obscene or pornographic, then they are investigating a potential crime. So they definitely would have a right [to investigate]. But if you believe that the book is just honest, then they don’t have a right.”
In an email to The Berkshire Edge, Police Chief Storti referred to The Berkshire County District Attorney’s Office for comment. In a statement from the District Attorney’s Office, District Attorney Timothy Shugrue said, “The complaint that was filed did not involve criminal activity, therefore, the Great Barrington Police Department and our office have closed the matter and referred any further action back to the Berkshire Hills Regional School District.” According to the statement Dillon assured the District Attorney’s Office that the issue will be reviewed according to the Berkshire Hills Regional School District’s policies and will remain as a school department matter.
While the Berkshire Hills Regional School District Committee met on December 14, they did not address the situation. However, during the public comments portion at the end of the meeting, parent Erica Mielke expressed her concerns to the committee. “I was happy to see Peter’s letter, and I think it raises a lot of important community issues around how the Police Department is making decisions, especially when they are calling on police to interfere with something that should be a school issue,” Mielke said. “How we all talk about issues around banning books and responding with knee-jerk reactions to things seems to be coming from a place of fear. I think there’s a really big discussion to be had here. I’m in communication with a lot of other parents who are extremely concerned.”
In response, Committee Chairman Stephen Bannon told Mielke that the issues surrounding the book were not discussed at the meeting because it was not on the meeting’s agenda. However, Bannon said that the issues would likely be discussed at the committee’s next meeting in January.
On Saturday, Dec. 16, Great Barrington Police Chief Paul Storti issued the following comment via a press release:
“On December 8, 2023 The Great Barrington Police Department received a complaint from a person who witnessed what they perceived to be concerning illustrations in a book that was provided to students by a teacher at W.E.B. Dubois Middle School. The illustration provided by the witness depicted animated characters performing sexual acts on each other. Because this complaint was made directly to the police department, we are obligated and have a duty to examine the complaint further. Thanks to our established relationship with the school, we were able to carefully work together to investigate this situation. This involved immediate notification of the Superintendent and Principal of the middle school. Because we were only provided a single image of the illustration, it was important to identify and examine the material that was reported to us. Working together, it was decided that the department would send an officer toward the end of the day in plain cloths to be escorted to the classroom and to see if the book containing the illustration could be located. After a brief conversation with the teacher, the officer was advised that the book in question was not there and could not be accounted for at that time. The officer advised the principal and teacher, that we were not there to investigate the subject matter of any books. As a procedure in sensitive or complex investigations, the police notified the District Attorney’s Office. Once the necessary information was gathered, it was determined that it is a matter to be managed within the Berkshire Hills Regional School District. The Great Barrington Police Department is dedicated to the safety of all people, especially children, and we take all complaints seriously.”
