Commonwealth Policy Center

The famous drag performer RuPaul recently launched an online bookstore called Allstora in response to so-called “book bans.” The store said it would “support all voices everywhere” by carrying books like the pornographic Gender Queer and Hitler’s Mein Kampf. Allstora said that “censorship of any book, perspective, or story is incompatible with the survival of democracy,” and “banning books is never the answer.” Interestingly, left-wing activists were outraged when they discovered that conservative books by Donald Trump, Matt Walsh, and Riley Gaines would also be available. The book-banning narrative pegs conservatives as being intolerant. It’s true conservatives have argued to protect children from pornography and indecency. But in this case, the intolerant left is banning books they simply disagree with.