Report: “Legislative Panel Pursues Bills to Regulate Wyoming Library Books With Sexual Material”
From WyoFile:
A Wyoming legislative committee decided Tuesday to draft bills to police books in libraries, taking steps down a constitutionally fraught path out of concern that literature dealing with sexuality and gender identity can corrupt minors.
Lawmakers are reviewing the content of library books, which has become a national crusade by religious conservatives, as activists and lawmakers around the state pore over material available in young adult and teen sections of libraries, hunting for sexual content.
They have focused specifically on books exploring LGBTQ+ issues that are written for young people, though some books dealing with issues like drug use are also under the microscope.
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Lawmakers asked Wyoming Library Association President Lindsey Travis and other bill opponents several times if they thought copies of Hustler, a pornographic magazine, should be available to minors. Travis responded that Hustler was considered obscene under the law and pornography wasn’t available in the library. The books in question aren’t the same thing, she said.
About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.
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