Gay Poems for Red States

By Willie Carver

Book Overview

At the beginning of Willie Carver's career, an administrator warned him about discussing his otherwise openly gay identity at work: "No one will protect you, including me." A new administration allowed for more freedom, but the initial warning eventually rang true. School officials failed repeatedly to address harassment of students and of Carver himself, until he could no longer endure such a purposeful deterioration of human rights. While Carver's testimony before the House of Representatives brought much-needed attention to the need for protections for LGBTQ+ people in schools, the damage was done. Months after being named the 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, he announced his decision to leave the public school system. In Gay Poems for Red States, Carver counters the injustice of a persistent anti-LGBTQ+ movement by asserting that a life full of beauty and pride is possible for everyone. More than a collection of poetry, Carver's earnest and heartfelt verses are for those wishing to discover and understand the vastness of Appalachia, and for the LGBTQ+ Appalachians who long for a future-for a home-in an often unwelcoming place.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813198127
• ISBN13: 9780813198125
• Release Date: May 2023
• Publisher: University Press of Kentucky
• Length: 120 Pages
• Weight: 0.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.6" x 8.5"