News
2005-10-07
Texas group
pressures libraries to remove children's books with gay
content
A veterans group
plans to hold protests Saturday against Montgomery
County, Texas, libraries in
A veterans group
plans to hold protests Saturday against Montgomery
County, Texas, libraries in an effort to remove about 70
children's books the group says contain explicit
material. Jim Cabaniss, president of American Veterans
in Domestic Defense, said the books contain
pornographic pictures or promote homosexuality. "Our purpose
is to deal with the excessive smut and pornography in
the children's sections of the library," he said. Some
titles include It's Perfectly Normal, The Perks of Being
a Wallflower, and The Plastic Man.
Montgomery County library director Jerilynn
Williams said she is aware of the protests but added
that the veterans group has not contacted her. "We
respect their right to have an opinion about material in our
libraries," Williams said. "We stand strongly on the right
of individuals to access information and the right of
individuals to choose material they deem appropriate
for themselves or their dependent children."
Cabaniss said some residents have approached the
commissioners court and the library board about
removing the books but that no action was taken. He
said the group's goal is to replace members of the two
boards with people who will vote to remove the books.
Children's books in Montgomery County have been
targeted before. In 2002 the Republican Leadership
Council, a conservative Christian group, asked that
the commissioners court remove It's Perfectly Normal and It's So
Amazing, both by Robie H. Harris, from library
shelves for the same reasons cited by the veterans group.
The books were removed for a few months but
returned following a recommendation by a library panel
that reviewed the books. The commissioners court
approved the recommendation. (AP)
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