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Beth Chaim Reform
Congregation Selling
Banned Books
Jarrad Saffren | Staff Writer
Photo by Alex Scherer
A 2022 Pen America study found
more than 2,500 instances of
school districts around the
country taking books out of their
libraries and curriculums during
the 2021-’22 year. More than 40% of
the 1,648 titles impacted contained
LGBTQ+ themes and/or characters,
while 40% included Black or brown
characters. Many of the 1,648 books
were about sex (22%), race and racism
(21%) and rights and activism (10%).

To combat efforts to ban such titles,
Beth Chaim Reform Congregation in
Malvern, is dedicating the fifth night
of Chanukah to giving some of them.

Beth Chaim’s social justice commit-
tee put together a list of 75 books to
order from Children’s Book World in
Haverford. Members of the committee
are also going around to the syna-
gogue’s religious school sessions and
other activities to see if congregants
want to place orders.

People outside of the temple are wel-
come to buy books as well and can
do so by emailing socialjustice@beth-
chaim.net. All buyers can pick up their
orders at the synagogue at any point
during Chanukah, which begins on
Dec. 18. The social justice committee
is recommending that people who buy
books give them to family members
and friends as gifts on the fifth night of
Chanukah to start a new tradition.

The goal, according to social justice
committee member Lois Lamond, is to
“make our community aware of what
is happening in terms of book banning
and what they can do.” That includes
contacting school board members,
attending school board meetings and
saying “we want our children to have
these materials,” Lamond said. The
committee is selling “Heather Has Two
Mommies” by Leslea Newman and
“Hair Love” by Matthew A. Cherry, a
story about a Black girl growing to love
her hair, among others.

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“For a child who’s never had an expe-
“Wiesel wrote that whoever listens to
rience with someone who’s different a witness becomes a witness,” Pearlman
from them, a book would be an oppor- said. “The greatest amount of books
e-mail:ntsad@aol.com tunity,” Lamond said.

banned now are books about people
visit: www.tay-sachs.org
The idea for the banned book sale of color, books about the LGBTQ+
came up a month ago during a meeting community. These books reflect the
of the social justice committee. Later, experience of real people.”
Rabbi Michelle Pearlman told the com-
But Hebert and Lamond both
mittee about a Yom Kippur sermon acknowledged that it is up to adults to
given earlier this year by Rabbi Sharon decide which books are appropriate for
Brous in Los Angeles. Brous recom- children to open. Hebert believes that
mended that people buy the banned it should be up to the librarian since
books they were concerned about losing. the librarian is a paid professional.

This message is sponsored by a friend of
Beth Chaim members saw it as a Lamond said she doesn’t have the solu-
Jewish issue, too. A small percentage of tion for picking the right titles for kids.

the books taken out of schools, like “The
In Children’s Book World, Hebert
Diary of Anne Frank” and “Maus” by and her team pick try to select a story
Nat’l Tay-Sachs & Allied Diseases
Association of Delaware Valley
Art Spiegelman, were about Jews. Plus, for “every child who would want one or
as Pearlman explained, “We’re lifting up need one, as inclusively and as openly
the fact that historically ban-
ning books is dangerous.”
Pearlman mentioned that
the Nazis started burning
books in 1933, years before
they began putting Jews in
concentration camps.

Removing a book from a
school library is, of course,
not the same as burning
it. Districts and parents
always need to make deci-
sions about which books
are best-suited to edu-
cate children. This does
not mean that they are
attempting to purge them
from public spaces in the
United States.

But Pearlman believes
that any ban can be a
slippery slope. The rabbi,
Beth Chaim Reform Congregation’s social justice committee is selling books that have been
Lamond and Heather banned in school districts across the country.

Hebert, the owner of
Children’s Book World,
think that it’s important
for kids to be able to at least access and as widely as we can,” she said. But hopes that the social justice committee
books about people from a wide variety they also “try to make sure these are can turn its sale into an annual event.

of backgrounds and life experiences. good books that we’d feel good about
“Our goal is to try to change the
Pearlman said she drew strength from putting in a child’s hands,” she added. world in the three feet around us,” she
Elie Wiesel, the Holocaust survivor and
Lamond concluded that these bans said. JE
author of “Night,” when she agreed to are “meant to prevent empathy for
help host the book sale.

people who are different from us.” She jsaffren@midatlanticmedia.com
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