Australia’s Classification Review Board has knocked back calls to restrict access to a memoir which documents a journey through gender identity.
The book has been the subject of conservative campaigns in the USA and in Australia activist Bernard Gaynor lead the charge against the book being easily available bookshops or included in library collections.
The Australian Classification Board ruled there were no concerns about the book being available to Australian readers. On 3 April 2023, the Classification Board classified it Unrestricted, with consumer advice of ‘M (Mature)—Not Recommended for Readers under 15 Years’.
The Director of the Classification Board, Fiona Jolly, said the book could remain on the shelves. Gaynor subsequently launched an appeal to the Classification Review Board asking them to take a second look at the ruling.
Today they said they agreed with the original decision that the book should be available.
“The Review Board found that the publication contains highly stylised depictions of classifiable elements that are consistently justified by context and appropriate for its intended audience.” the review body said its published decision.
They said they found that the publication contained “highly stylised depictions of nudity and sex that, when considered within the broader context of the publication, are no higher than moderate in impact, and are not exploitative, offensive, gratuitous, or very detailed.”
Author Maia Kobabe’s 2019 graphic memoir recounts their journey from adolescence to adulthood, and the author’s exploration of gender identity and sexuality, ultimately identifying as being outside the gender binary.
The book is aimed at young adult and tackles topics including gender euphoria and dysphoria, and asexuality. In 2020 it was the recipient of an Alex Award from the American Library Association which sparked a wave of interest in the book which saw it being added to many library shelves.
The book has become a target for conservative activists who argue that the work is pornographic due to a select number of images in the book. Kobabe has urged those who have concerns about the book to read it in its entirety rather than getting upset over a small number of images.
Detractors of the work have raised concern about several passages, including a section where 14-year-old Kobabe fantasizes about an older man touching the penis of a youth. The image is based on a painting on an ancient piece of Greek pottery. Another section includes Kobabe’s girlfriend performing oral sex on a strap-on dildo, while there are also depictions of masturbation.
Aspiring politician and social commentator Bernard Gaynor responded to the decision on social media, mocking the ruling and indicating that he would be seeking further legal advice on the ruling.
To date his campaign against the book has included reporting it to Queensland Police and staging a protest outside his local library.
Gaynor has previously been a political candidate for the Bob Katter party, and also stood for the short-lived right wing party Australian Liberty Alliance. Back in 2014 Gaynor shared his views on homosexuality, telling OUTinPerth he was in favour of public displays of homosexuality being made illegal.
OIP Staff
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