A chain of Victorian bookshops has offered an apology after its owner made comments on social media calling for more books with “just white kids on the cover” and no “wheelchair, rainbow or indigenous art”.
Susanne Horman, the owner of Robinsons Bookshop, made the comments on her personal social media account in December, but it was widely shared online over the weekend.
On X, formerly known as Twitter, Horman posted a series of tweets saying there had been a “substantial shift” in the Australian publishing industry.
“What’s missing from our bookshelves in store?” Horman asked on her now-deleted account, before answering her own question with “Positive male lead characters of any age, any traditional nuclear white family stories, kids picture books with just white kids on the cover, and no wheelchair, rainbow or indigenous art, non indig [sic] aus history.”
In another post the business owner said she would stop stocking books that were part of the “woke agenda”.
“Books we don’t need: hate against white Australians, socialist agenda, equity over equality, diversity and inclusion (READ AS anti-white exclusion), left wing govt propaganda. Basically the woke agenda that divides people. Not stocking any of these in 2024.” Horman said.
On Saturday night the company posted a response saying the comments had been “taken out of context” and were not representative of the company.
“We sincerely apologise to anyone who has been offended by online comments that are being edited by individuals and posted on social media about Robinsons.
They are being taken out of context and being misrepresented as the views of Robinsons Bookshop when they are not.” the post read.
“We clearly state, so there is no misunderstanding, that we fully support and encourage stories from diverse voices, minorities and we are most definitely stocking these important topics and the authors that write them.
“As a business we will continue advocating for positive hope-filled stories that bring out the best in all our community and make all people feel supported and fulfilled. We ask everyone to treat all of our staff with kindness and respect.” the company said.
Robinsons Bookshop says there is market opportunity for publishers
In a further post the company said people had misunderstood the posts, arguing that Horman was highlighting that there is a gap in the market that publishers could cater too.
“During the last few years, the buying team at Robinsons has noticed most books being released have little variation of themes. Susanne Horman, Chief Executive at Robinsons, who posted the comments on social media, believes this has caused an opportunity in the market for authors to fill.
“While some genres are overflowing on the shelves, others are noticeably bare. Positive stories with men and boys as the hero are almost missing from the mix. Neither Susanne Horman, nor Robinsons Bookshop are making a value judgement on this observation. Susanne apologises if people have taken this comment as a negative reflection on an excellent range of diverse books.
“Robinsons Bookshop believes a good bookshop should offer a range of genres to cater for customer needs and fully encourages, supports and stocks stories from diverse voices.
“However, mainstream fiction with males or boys as the hero in general, are now all but missing, resulting in very few fiction titles for essentially half the population.
“As stated previously, Robinsons draws no conclusions about the reasons for the shift, stating there is a gap on their shelves and an opportunity for authors to fill it.
Susanne Horman and Robinsons Bookshop apologises if any comments made on social media have upset or offended anyone and would like to reassure customers that it will continue to stock a diverse range of books.”
Authors call for boycott of bookshop
Author Claire G. Coleman has commented on the situation saying she would be boycotting the store in the future, saying if she had the power to stop them stocking her works, she would.
“I am going to boycott Robinsons Bookstore as long as Susanne Horman is the owner. I would prefer Robinsons were not given the opportunity to stock my books. I invite you all to do the same” Coleman commented on social media.
Award winning writer Daniel James has also spoken out about the controversy.
“I’m perplexed by [Horman’s] position considering how many books and stories are written by white men,” he told The Age. “The way we change things and get Australians to understand issues facing First Nations people is through stories … we are in the golden age of First Nations storytelling through books, music, television, and anyone choosing to not stock our books would be doing themselves a disservice, because these books sell.”
Robinsons Bookshop is the oldest chain of independent bookstores in Victoria, established 60 years ago, Horman became the owner in 2007.
OUTinPerth has reached out to the company for comment.
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