Terri & Sandy's Unbannable Book Spotlights Queer Creative Voices

A chilling wave of book bans has threatened to erase LGBTQIA+ voices from the cultural conversation in the United States, a targeted erasure of queer voices, stories, and most chillingly, rights. So this Pride Month, independent agency Terri & Sandy set out to create a book they legally can’t ban. Enter: 'The Unbannable Book', a digital archive of standout work by queer professionals in advertising, design, and beyond. It's the loudest, proudest pride portfolio in advertising history – because while they can try to ban books, they can't ban our ideas..

Unlike the titles vanishing from classroom shelves– more than 16,000 since 2021, with more than 10,000 bans in American public schools in 2025 alone, according to PEN America, and of those being banned or challenged, nearly 2,500 explicitly classified as 'queer books,' – 'The Unbannable Book' legally can’t be pulled from circulation. It’s a website protected by the First Amendment and built as a living, growing digital portfolio of LGBTQIA+ artistry and expression, one that defies the silencing of queer voices and instead places them front and centre.

Debuting here, the initiative includes submissions from queer professionals across advertising and related industries, Each participant contributes a piece of work that makes them feel seen, proud, or fulfilled, creating a tapestry of queer creative excellence. Work was curated from a powerful mix of voices - from members of inclusivity mentor/mentee network Project Violet, which elevates queer voices in the workplace, to the associate creative director behind the Mastercard x Lady Gaga Little Monsters event, to the designer behind The Absolut Documentary, celebrating Absolut's queer advertising pre-2000.

Further rallying the broader creative community around the effort, the agency has also created a 'Can’t Ban My Book' badge that contributors and supporters can display on their LinkedIn profiles and other social media sites. The badge is a way for creatives to show pride, connect with peers, and make their identity visible in professional spaces.

“In advertising, our books aren’t novels or textbooks – they’re portfolios,” said Sandy Greenberg, co-founder and CEO at Terri & Sandy. “So we built a book that no one can ban: a collection of meaningful work from LGBTQIA+ creatives, housed in a place that can’t be censored or shut down.”

'The Unbannable Book' is the latest example of Terri & Sandy’s long-standing commitment to LGBTQIA+ advocacy, including the award-winning Strands for Trans campaign – the first global registry of trans-affirming hair, beauty, and wellness industries and a certified 501(c)(3) non-profit organisation – and Santa’s Slay, which celebrated queer joy through a viral storybook reimagining of Santa as a fierce holiday icon.