BY SUYIN HAYNES
When Hungary’s Dorottya Redai and Boldizsar Nagy released their new children’s book on Sept. 21, they did not expect their initial run of 1,500 copies to sell out within two weeks. Meseorszag mindenkie, or A Fairy Tale for Everyone, is an anthology of retellings of traditional fairy tales, updated with more diverse, inclusive and LGBTQ characters in contemporary settings. Among the new protagonists are a Roma Cinderella, a lesbian Snow Queen, and a gender non-conforming deer. “Our aim was to make children’s literature more diverse in Hungary and show children how colorful and wonderful life is,” says Nagy, the book’s editor. “We wanted stories that reflect and honor the lives of all young people.” A second edition run of 15,000 copies will be released next week—large figures for a children’s book in a relatively small market.
“It seems like the book is becoming a symbol of resistance against oppression and discrimination. It seems like a lot of people realized that this is important to have this kind of book. This xenophobic, homophobic, anti-semitic, racist and sexist climate will probably end only when the rule of this government ends, not sooner; but it’s been challenged, and I hope it can inspire other people to make other challenges.”
Yet shortly after its release, A Fairy Tale for Everyone became the target of homophobic attacks by politicians, including the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, and is facing a public boycott. On Sept. 25, the deputy leader of Hungary’s far-right Mi Hazank party tore apart the book’s pages one by one during a press conference, calling it “homosexual propaganda.” The move was swiftly condemned by human rights activists and the Hungarian Publishers’ and Booksellers Association, who called the act reminiscent of Nazi book-burners and Communist book shredders. When questioned about the book during a radio interview on Oct. 4, Orban said “Hungary is a patient, tolerant country as regards [to] homosexuality. But there is a red line that cannot be crossed, and this is how I would sum up my opinion: Leave our children alone.” A co-ordinated petition and campaign organized by ultra-conservative campaign group CitizenGO demanding the book’s removal from bookstores has gained at least 85,000 signatures. Read more via TIME