Rochester Pride cancels visit by author of controversial children’s book over ‘safety concerns’

The organizers of Rochester’s annual Pride festival have canceled an appearance by author Emily Neilson due to unspecified safety concerns.

The visit by Neilson, whose children’s book “The Rainbow Parade” was pulled from the shelves of a local elementary school in December because of its depictions of public nudity, was scheduled to take place Monday at a local church.

Organizers declined to share details about the reason for the cancellation out of concern “for the safety and privacy of those involved.” However, Rochester Pride said on social media that it does believe there is an ongoing threat.

The nonprofit, which has already purchased 250 copies of “The Rainbow Parade,” said it instead plans host a book giveaway event in the near future.

Rochester Pride had invited Neilson for a book reading and signing in the wake of Rochester Public Schools' decision to remove “The Rainbow Parade” from a media center at Franklin Elementary School.

Published in 2022, the illustrated book tells the story of a child who attends an LGBTQ Pride parade with her two moms. Two pages of the book show people in the parade who are nude or partially nude, while another depicts two men wearing harnesses.

Rochester Superintendent Kent Pekel told the school board in January that while he strongly supports the inclusion of books that celebrate the lives and experiences of LGBTQ people, the imagery made it inappropriate for a media center where children could access the book without adult supervision.

Rochester Pride objected to the district’s decision, saying it “perpetuated the idea that being openly LGBTQIA+ and expressing yourself as such should still be considered widely shameful and only take place behind closed doors.”