To the Editor,
The article, “CENSORED....”, published on November 16, was well researched but unabashedly one-sided.
Mat Ward quoted those who spoke up against the school board’s decision; those in favor were ignored. Though I appreciated his explanation of the new law, in too many ways this article was an inflammatory opinion piece than impartial journalism. Our real intent and purpose was completely misrepresented in the article, and the bias was very evident. The reasons why the superintendent and board made the decision to remove pornographic content from the school libraries were intentionally left out.
What we’re NOT doing
Simply put, book banning. We are NOT banning books, burning books, or preventing their access. These books are easily accessible elsewhere (at the city library or online).
What we ARE doing
We ARE advocating for responsible choices in materials available in the schools. There ARE seriously pornographic books that have no business being in a library for minors. We are merely asking the law be upheld, which is why the books were removed.
I had refrained from reading excerpts from these books at the school board meeting because they were too sexually explicit. I told the board that I respected them, and myself, too much to read them aloud. All were provided the content ahead of time to review instead. All who saw, without exception, agreed wholeheartedly that they SHOULD NOT be in any of the school libraries. That is why they shut the DHS Library down for two days and removed the most offensive books.
Matt Ward took the fact that I didn’t read any excerpts at the meeting to intimate that I was exaggerating and that they couldn’t be that bad. He himself was given the same material to look at. It would seem he did not take that opportunity or did not care.
The vast majority of Utah parents, educators, and school librarians have no idea of the extent or level of pornography that is in these books. That has been the case here. I have discovered that when they were able to see for themselves, all came to the same conclusion – that these books do not belong in the schools. I don’t fault anyone at all for this understandable oversight; for I know that these books got in the schools through faulty & misleading awards and recommendations.
Just one example: “Let’s Talk about It,” by Erika Moen, advertised as a helpful book on teen sexuality, should be advertised as “All things sexual, including all possible forms of perversion, with detailed and very graphic instructions & illustrations for how to do them.” The author unabashedly calls herself a pervert, and includes the following disclaimer in her book: ““The author and publisher expressly disclaim responsibility for any adverse effects that may result from the use or application of the information contained in this book.” -- Google it. Pull up the images. Most are blurred.
This latest positive action by our school district is simply another part of the schools’ and states’ overall effort to protect children from pornography in the schools, as they are already doing with internet filters on the chrome books and tablets.
Please don’t buy into the narrative being pushed. I invite you to see for yourselves. This is a link to excerpts of books that were removed, made available for anyone to view:
https://go.boarddocs.com/ut/ millard/Board.nsf/files/CKTPG664812C/$file/Delta%20High%20 School%20rated%20books%20excerpts.pdf
To those who will consider, thank you!
—April Love
Oak City
