Libraries Remove Queer Teen Book Under Conservative Pressure

A public library system in New Jersey has removed a book by and for queer youth after a request from a member of conservative talk-show host Glenn Beck's 9.12 group. The same woman, Beverly Marinelli, got a local high school to remove the book in early May, reports School Library Journal (SLJ).

The book, Revolutionary Voices: A Multicultural Queer Youth Anthology, ed. Amy Sonnie (Alyson, 2000), was named one of the best adult books for high school students by SLJ in 2001. The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) calls it "the first creative resource by and for queer and questioning youth of every color, class, religion, gender and ability."

Marinelli told the Philadelphia Inquirer, however, that the book was "pervasively vulgar, obscene, and inappropriate." It is sexually explicit in parts, but the American Library Association's Booklist magazine felt, "The voices are raw and sometimes unpolished, and the language is passionate, powerful, and only occasionally graphic [my emphasis]."

Before the Rancocas Valley Regional High School in Mount Holly removed the book in May, it received a formal challenge, then convened a committee to review the work, said the Library Law Blog. The committee did at the same time vote to retain two other gay-themed books, NJ.com reported. When the Burlington County Library System (BCLS)  conceded to Marinelli's request, however, there was no formal book challenge, and library commissioners did not follow their own standard procedures and vote on the matter. Librarian Gail Sweet told another local librarian in an e-mail (obtained by the New Jersey ACLU through an open-records request, and available through the Library Law Blog) that the book was removed on the grounds of "child pornography."

Whether the book is obscene and necessitates removal is a matter for those who have read it. The fact that the Rancocas High School kept two gay-themed books on the shelves indicates to me that they are at least exercising some discretion, and not acting out of pure LGBT bias. LGBT-themed books in general, however, are among those most often challenged around the country.

Marinelli's motivation seems to stem directly from that bias — and the situation is about more than just the suitability of one particular book. She told the Philadelphia Inquirer she was inspired by conservative blogger Gateway Pundit's campaign against Kevin Jennings, the openly gay Assistant Deputy Secretary for the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools at the U.S. Department of Education. E-mail between Marinelli and Sweet confirms that Marinelli referred Sweet to posts by Gateway Pundit and Big Government, two of the blogs working hardest to smear Jennings with allegations that he encouraged children to read porn and to engage in deviant sex acts and that he aided in the statutory rape of a student.

If a book is challenged in your school or public library, you should review the American Library Association's advice on dealing with and reporting challenges, and/or contact Angela Maycock, Assistant Director, Office for Intellectual Freedom, 800-545-2433, ext. 4221, or the Office for Intellectual Freedom, 800-545-2433, ext. 4223. (Drop us a note here at Change.org, too.)

Photo credit: Reeveb