Libraries, the dying war hero in the print vs. online fight, still serve a purpose. Otherwise, why would school districts continue making room in their budgets for these things? Libraries are there to educate and inspire our kids (and adults!), but are also imperative in that whole "transfer of knowledge" thing. Which is why we get all riled up when we hear about libraries censoring gay material, under the guise of protecting children, when all they're really doing is discriminating against one class of Americans and, instead of teaching children about the wonders of the universe, shaming gay kids (and the "questioning" types) into believing homosexuality is bad — because the library banned it. Let's go to Wisconsin!
Heaven forbid Heather Has Two Mommies make its way into the hands of a child …
The Milwaukee chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) says that when the West Bend Community Memorial Library Board takes up the complaint filed over gay-themed books in the Library's young adult collection, it should follow young adult policies that ensure materials are accessible, inclusive and appropriate for young readers.
ACLU of Wisconsin Youth and Programs Director Emilo De Torre came to the council chambers at City Hall last week to learn more about a formal complaint made by Ginny and Jim Maziarka of West Bend on what they called questionable materials within the library system.
The meeting was postponed because the large crowd attending exceeded the room's capacity and would have resulted in a fire code violation.
"I heard a lot of misinformation about gays and lesbians from would-be censors at the meeting," said De Torre. "Libraries are about intellectual freedom. I went to support those who want our libraries to be places that serve all community members, young and old." [GMToday]
So Lady Gaga Was Pretty Great at the AMAs. And Adam Lambert Was Pretty Terrible (49)
· scott ny'er says: I’m don’t dig Adam’s screeching. But, I actually like FYE, after... »
· trent says: I enjoyed Adam’s performance and I enjoyed Lady Gaga’s performance. I... »
· Brandon33 says: I don’t know audiophobe…you may be right about some of that, but that... »
What Happened Last Month Before Your Little Boycott? The DNC Raised $11.5 Million (22)
· Cam says: No. 21 · Kurt “Will you be donating?” Yep. And there is no gay boycott. There... »
EXCUSES: The Senate Just Knocked DADT’s Hearings Into Next Year (24)
· Cam says: No. 22 · Rainfish said….. @ #19 WillBFair uh…well, let’s see…it was the... »
· Cam says: Um, the congressional black caucus just held up a vote in Barney Franks committee and... »
Morning Goods: Alex Marte (28)
· Lewis says: Typical italian. Pathetic »
A Trans Superhero? A Lesbian Wonder Woman? Introducing the Totally Queer Spandex Comic (10)
· Martin says: P.S. I also wanna say that I checked out the links above. A lot of them are super-duos,... »
PHOTOS: Rebel With a Cause (2)
· terrwill says: OMG!!!!! #10 & 11 Queerty ALMOST showed a PENIS!!! (David: I think civilization... »
The Ridiculous Catholic Manifesto Pledging to Ignore Gay Marriage + Abortion Laws (50)
· Peter says: Russ; only you will burn in hell. People who do not follow your ideas of a religion, are... »
Do they read in Wisconsin?
I think they just got electricity.
I just want to point out that these boards are often full of community members (i.e. parents) who often attempt to force their views onto the libraries under the guise of parental concern. Librarians have historically resisted these kinds of incursions and any librarian worth his or her salt would find any sort of book banning abhorrent.
Hey now, Osocubano, us dairy farmers do plenty of reading! Plus, good chunks of our state are incredibly progressive. Bonus? Rep. Tammy Baldwin. ;)
It might shock some to learn that Wisconsin was one of the first states to pass an employment non-discrimination law for sexual identity in 1982 and it was the first state to make it apply to all jobs within the state instead of just state employment.
As a former librarian I can also tell you that you can find close-minded, anti-intellectuals in every state who fear nothing more than people learning to think for themselves and public libraries are usually where they start their wretched crusades to "protect the children."
subscribed
where i live libraries exist solely for teenagers to check their myspace on the free internet. a lot of people don't actually peruse the books so i don't see the point of banning them. the kids don't read them. (ok that's sort of a generalization but here in my section of Wyoming they really don't and they're REALLY proud of that).
@bek: Every generation gets some things right that the preceding ones didn't. Unfortunately, every generation also makes its own mistakes. Being proud of being a non-reader is incredibly shameful. I absolutely cannot take non-readers seriously, under any circumstances.
@vernonvanderbilt: I can't either, which is why I roll my eyes at book banning news items because for what i've seen, a lot of kids aren't even reading so … what good is banning stuff?