“You Can’t Ban That!”: LGBTQ+ Youth of Color Speak Back to Book Bans in Utah

Authors

• Sonny Partola, University of Wisconsin-Stevens PointFollow
• Leticia Alvarez Gutiérrez, University of UtahFollow

Author ORCID Identifier

0000-0003-4192-4114

Abstract

This article explores how LGBTQ+ youth of color (LGBTQ+ YOC) in Utah perceive anti-LGBTQ+ book bans amid a hostile sociopolitical climate. Drawing from a critical ethnographic study at a public high school, and guided by Queer of Color Critique, we examine how censorship, heteronormativity, and White Christian nationalism shape book bans. Youth participants described such bans as mechanisms of erasure and harm that restrict access to affirming literature and reinforce marginalization, while also revealing contradictions in schools’ promotion of literacy alongside censorship. Despite these harms, participants resisted erasure—asserting visibility, belonging, and intellectual freedom. This study contributes to scholarship on censorship and youth resistance, offering implications for creating affirming educational environments informed by youth perspectives.

Methodological Approach

Qualitative

DOI

https://doi.org/10.60808/57t7-d285

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Partola, S., & Gutiérrez, L. A. (2026). “You Can’t Ban That!”: LGBTQ+ Youth of Color Speak Back to Book Bans in Utah. Journal of Queer and Trans Studies in Education, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.60808/57t7-d285

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