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Mayor Steve Patterson reads a book to children at the Athens Public library. The library teamed up with the Ohio University Student Senate to have story time and craft night for Pride Week on Tuesday, March 27.

Library Pride Week event shares themes of acceptance with children through storytelling

A group of almost a dozen children gathered Tuesday night in the back corner of the Athens Public Library. They grinned at their parents while making rainbow beaded bracelets that spelled out their names and decorating heart-shaped magnets with glitter glue.

Then, they gathered around Athens Mayor Steve Patterson to hear a story. Snacking on animal crackers and sipping from juice pouches, they sat in a circle on short stools while the mayor read aloud from the children’s book This Day In June. It told a story in rhyme about the day in June when we’re all united: LGBT Pride Day.

Sponsored by the Ohio University Student Senate, the library hosted Pride Week Storytime and Crafts, which featured several books with pro-LGBT themes read aloud and given away to children that attended. Titles read included And Tango Makes Three, a story about a two male penguins who fall in love and adopt their own egg, and Heather Has Two Mommies, which follows a girl who is the daughter of a lesbian couple during her first day of school.

When Patterson was asked to read at the event, he said he agreed without hesitation. He enjoyed sharing his time with the children and hopes the event will continue to grow in the future.

“I hope that (the children) realize that families come in all different genres and sizes,” he said. “Equality is important for everybody.”

Jessica Sheets brought her 8-year-old son, Liam, to the story time and craft night after learning about it when they attended another library event. She enjoyed hearing the sweet stories read by others and watching the young ones play with the crafting supplies.

Additionally, Sheets appreciated that the books had a clear message, which was told in a way that was digestible and impactful to children.

“I think it’s wonderful,” she said. “I’m really happy that they’re doing this. It’s a good thing.”

Anna Ayers, an LGBT student senator, decided to organize the event after encountering LGBT-oriented children’s books for the first time while Christmas shopping. She said Student Senate has been making an effort to conduct more events that reach beyond the university, and she was happy to have gotten an enthusiastic "yes" from the library when she proposed the idea.

Ayers, a junior studying journalism and finance, said she hopes the children who attended took away the message that they could be anything they want to be. More and more often, the message is being sent that people can look and feel any way they want to, and she was thankful for the opportunity to share that message with Athens children through books, she said.

“You kind of become who you are when you’re young,” she said. “This is the point in somebody’s life where you can either decide to embrace discrimination or embrace everybody. So I think doing this now, it’s going to work.”

@adeichelberger

ae595714@ohio.edu

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