The Family Book by Todd Parr has been banned in multiple school districts because of the reference to same-sex marriage in the portion about having two moms or having two dads. By making 'color-blindness' be about colors of people that don't exist, it shifts the spotlight from the institutional and systematic privileges that white people DO possess. The problem is that purple people are not real. It's like that statement 'color doesn't matter to me, white, brown, black, yellow, purple, it's all the same' is made into an actual book form.

However, many people of color have spent way too much time trying to explain to white anti-racists (or those who believe themselves to be) why using depictions of either animals or humans that aren't human-shades (let alone both at the same time) to break down racism, actually reinforces white supremacy. It attempts to tackle interracial families like this (among the many different family depictions that it gives). The illustrations employ depictions of animals and humans of unnatural (purple, green, pink, bright yellow) colors to showcase how families are different.

I would not read this to children, even though the message is sweet (understanding of differences and the positive attributes of families), because of issues with racism. His corporate collaborations include Best Buy, Stouffer’s, and the San Francisco–Marin Food Bank, among others.Ī native of Wyoming, Parr currently lives in Berkeley, California. He is a frequent reader and fundraiser for The Ronald McDonald House and serves on the board of directors for the Virginia Children’s Book Festival. Parr devotes time to numerous philanthropic causes supporting pet adoption, children’s hunger, health, and literacy. Several short films for Sesame Street have also been based on Parr’s work. He also is the co-creator of the popular three-time Daytime Emmy©-nominated animated TV series, 'ToddWorld' with Gerry Renert of SupperTime Entertainment. His books have received numerous awards and are available in nearly twenty languages. He has inspired and empowered children around the world with simple, hopeful, and powerful messages such as “be kind”, “love yourself” and “be who you are,” all set with vibrant images in eye-catching primary colors. Todd Parr is a three-time New York Times-bestselling author and illustrator of more than fifty books for children.

We Belong Together by Todd Parr