LeVar Burton addresses book flagged by Alabama library because author’s last name is ‘Gay’

Burton spoofed the popular children’s television show “Reading Rainbow” with a segment titled, “Why Did They Ban This Book?”

He showed a group of children several books, including “Read Me a Story, Stella,” a picture book about two siblings building a doghouse.

AL.com reported in October that Huntsville-Madison County Public librarians had mistakenly added the title to a list of potentially “sexually explicit” books to be moved from the children section because the author’s name is Marie-Louise Gay.

“What!” one of the children exclaimed, placing her hands on her face when Burton explained the reasoning. “Are you dead serious?” another child asked. Multiple children replied at once, “Because of the last name?”

World War II historians have encountered this style of idiocy with the name of the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Enola Gay. This was named for the pilot’s mother, Enola Gay Tibbets (1890-1966)..

US newspaper claims Hiroshima bombing caused by ‘homosexual’ plane

Whereas the plane that dropped the bomb was actually named the Enola Gay, The Observer Chronicle has decided to rename the vehicle - as the “Enola Homosexual”

The article reads: “U.S. bomber, the Enola Homosexual, dropped the primary atomic weapon ever for use in wartime on Hiroshima at 8:15 a.m. on Aug. 6, 1945.

“The bombing, along side one other atomic assault on the town of Nagasaki two days later, are extensively credited with bringing the struggle within the Pacific to a swift conclusion.”

It is unclear whether the paper purposefully made the change, or if it was a mistake made by the reporter when writing the article.