‘What’s so subversive about inclusive kid’s lit?’

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Bear Bergman and Zetta Elliott presenting “What’s so subversive about inclusive kid’s lit?.” Bergman and Elliott will be reading some of their work and talking about their writing, publishing, and activism work on LGBTQ+, inclusive, and feminist literature for children.

Bergman is a writer, storyteller, educator, activist and the founder and publisher of children’s book publisher Flamingo Rampant, which makes feminist, culturally-diverse children’s picture books about LGBTQ+ kids and families. Bergman writes creative non-fiction for grown-ups, fiction for children, resolutely factual features for various publications, the advice column Asking Bear, and was the co-editor along with Kate Bornstein of Gender Outlaws: The Next Generation.

Zetta Elliott, PhD in American Studies from NYU, is an acclaimed Black feminist author of young adult and children’s literature and an advocate for community-based publishing. In response to persistent racial disparities in the US publishing industry, Zetta has developed programs with libraries and launched her own publishing imprint. Her latest novel, “The Door at the Crossroads,” was a finalist in the Speculative Fiction category of the 2017 Cybils Awards, and her picture book, Melena’s Jubilee, won a 2017 Skipping Stones Award. Her new collection of poems, “Say Her Name,” will be published in 2019 by Disney/Hyperion.