John Oliver’s Gay Kids’ Book Sent To Karen Pence’s Anti-LGBT School
Last week, it was announced that Vice President Mike Pence’s wife, Karen Pence, had taken a job teaching art at a Christian school that discriminates against LGBT students, staff, and even parents. While most people are angry that she would condone such discrimination, others have taken swift — and hilarious — action.
Vice is reporting that an LGBTQ activist group decided to respond by sending 100 copies of John Oliver’s gay children’s book, A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, to the school.
Oliver, the face of Last Week Tonight, decided to organize his team to write the book about the Pence family rabbit after Mike and Karen’s daughter wrote a very religious story about the bunny, with Karen illustrating the children’s tale. Oliver’s version of the story has outsold the original somewhat.
In Oliver’s version, Marlon Bundo is gay and wants to marry another male rabbit, something the Pence’s have made clear over the years they would never approve of.
When news of Karen’s new job hit the media, the Trevor Project, a non-profit organization that aims at helping prevent suicide in the young LGBTQ community that gets part of the profits from the sale of the book, thought copies of the book would be the perfect gift for her.
Marlon Bundo is back in the news. https://t.co/BoOL5R2JOC
— VICE (@VICE) January 18, 2019
The Trevor Project also included a note with their shipment.
“Policies and rhetoric that exclude or reject LGBTQ youth can lead to increased risk for suicide and depression, and it’s our organization’s mission to end suicide among LGBTQ young people,” the letter reads.
“With your help, we hope you will change your school’s student and employee policies to accept LGBTQ students and employees.”
The school, Immanuel Christian School, has a strict policy about students and staff, and requires their employees to sign documentation that would condemn LGBTQ practices and those who practice them. They are also not allowed to condone others engaging in those practices.
They also need to sign contracts that confirm they are not participating in premarital sex, premarital cohabitation, or other practices the church condemns. Their website drills home the old-fashioned marriage ideal of “one man and one woman,” and warns that no one associated with the school should “violate the unique roles of male and female.”
Of course, the literature offered to the students is limited to that which is considered suitable, and a book about a gay rabbit marry another male rabbit certainly would not be on the approved list. Nevertheless, the Trevor Project has suggested they “include [it] in the school’s library or classrooms.”
Karen previously worked at the school for over a decade before taking a break. The couple’s daughter also attends the institution.
