OFSA Library Alert - Protect Children in Oklahoma Public Libraries by Supporting HB 2158

(TIME SENSITIVE; FOR IMMEDIATE CIRCULATION)

March 13, 2006

(Hyperlinks in Text)

Oklahoma State Representative Sally Kern has a bill, House Bill 2158, which will go to the floor for a vote very soon, perhaps within the week. According to the Library Stories blog, the Friday (March 10) editorial in the Daily Oklahoman is from none other than Oklahoma City’s mayor condemning the fine State Representative for her efforts to restrict funding from public libraries unless they re-shelve obscene materials and books regarding homosexuality to a section where only adults can sign for same. She is only doing her job. The mayor calls the bill “ironic” and says it removes local control. That the buck will stop at the parent is local control. It just isn’t library control. The story is below as registration is required for viewing, and some may not want to do this.

Additionally, the Tulsa City-County Library posted its say on their website, also condemning Representative Kern’s bill. Part of the TCCL’s statement says that they encourage parental involvement. This is reflective of the ALA and typical of librarians across the country when anyone looks to protect children. If the libraries want parental involvement in selecting books for children and they want parents to stay near their children, then what is their problem with having a parent check out these explicit materials for their children?

The major city-county libraries shelve their books with a teen section, a children’s section and then a fiction section where adult reads are available. It would cost them no more to move the smutty books, bought and paid for by the Oklahoman taxpayer. In fact, it would free up space in the younger sections for libraries to add sophisticated reading such as Pride and Prejudice or Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

OFSA wonders what would happen to libraries if they were to only receive funding from those who want children to have access to vulgar material. Would there be many libraries in this state?

OFSA supports Representative Kern and her bill. If you support same, there is action you can take:

® Oklahomans can click here to enter their address and find their representative. You can simply ask that they support the bill.

® Anyone can write a small letter of encouragement to Representative Kern at sallykern@okhouse.gov. She is an ally and an inspiration to OFSA.

® Anyone can also write a letter to the editor at the Daily Oklahoman and respond to the Oklahoma City mayor’s editorial: Yourviews@oklahoman.com

Don't Legislate Library Book Access

http://newsok.com/article/1783185/

Oklahoman Editorial

A BILL that could strip public libraries of state funding if they fail to cater to a legislative whim deserves to end up in the trash can, not the law books.

House Bill 2158 would require libraries to place any books with homosexuality or "sexually explicit" subject matter in a separate area of the library available only to adults. Libraries wanting state funding must provide documentation of their compliance and a copy of their adults-only distribution policy.

The bill passed a House committee Wednesday and now awaits a vote from the full House. We urge House members to defeat the bill.

We find it ironic that the bill said each policy should "reflect the contemporary community standard of the community the library is located in." In putting the bill on a path to becoming law, lawmakers are taking away such local control and substituting it with their judgment. It's not the Legislature's job to tell libraries which books to stock and where to put them. Local library boards are capable of making decisions on whether restricted access is necessary.

Last month, the governing board of Oklahoma County libraries approved a proposal to create a special "parenting collection" of children's books on a variety of issues, including homosexuality and sexually themed material. While the issue was contentious, board members listened to community input and gave it thoughtful debate before deciding.

That's the kind of decision-making process appropriate for a library. While we appreciate attempts to shield children from subjects they may not understand or be ready for, that's a parent's job. For lawmakers to usurp that role is bad public policy.

This isn't the first time this session where we've argued that the Legislature needs to keep its hands off. Sometimes, the best action the Legislature can take is none at all. This issue is a perfect example.

I wouldn't mind children reading educational material about homosexuality like the below:

The homosexual lifestyle is an extremely dangerous one. According to numerous studies, many of which have been commissioned by homosexual publications; 20% of homosexuals report of participating in sadomasochism where their partner is hurt, scratched, bruised and/or bloodied. 41% of male homosexuals and 8% of lesbians report "fisting"; where the arm is inserted up the rectum of one's partner. Over 90% of male homosexuals participate in the insertion of the penis into the rectum of their sexual partner's.

This practice carries great risk for both participants. The rectum was not created to withstand this abuse. Fecal matter can inter through the urethra, and sperm breaks through the single layer of the columnar epithelium of the rectum, causing massive immunological disruptions in the blood system, making the person at much greater risk for infection. It's no wonder that homosexuals are 245% more apt to report 2 or more sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) at a time, than heterosexuals.

The consequences of this behavior is magnified when one looks at the number of partners the average homosexual has in his/her lifetime. Most homosexual sex is performed with strangers. 70% admitting to having sex only once with over half of their partners. The average Homosexual has had 300 to 500 partners during a lifetime. 28% have performed sodomy on over 1000 partners. Only 2% have had monogamous relationships, and those are defined as lasting anywhere between 9 and 60 months.

Of these monogamous relationships;

5% drank urine
7% incorporated fisting
33% ingested feces
53% swallowed semen

Contrary to media propaganda, these practices are not always taking place "behind closed doors", in the privacy of one's own bedroom. According to The Gay Report, a homosexual magazine; the most frequented places to practice homosexual behavior are:

public restrooms
bus stations
service stations
public libraries
rest stops
"health clubs" where groups gather to watch others engage in sodomy or go to private booths for themselves
"gay bars" and night clubs
street corners where they "cruise" for others
"glory holes" (circular holes cut out of partitions between stalls in public restrooms allowing anonymous oral sodomy with the person in the next stall)
pornographic bookstores
peep shows
movie houses
public parks where groups gather in the bushes
beaches and public baths.

In Fact "Bob Damron's Address Book" lists all of the parks and recreation areas in the country that are frequented for anonymous homosexual activity, so new homosexuals to your town can always know where others congregate.

Vicki Liviakas wrote an article for the New York Times 12/11/93, in which she stated that there was a resurgence of activity in the gay bath houses in San Francisco. They lack self discipline. The young gay male population was more reluctant to practice what they call "safe sex". A second wave of AIDS is feared by officials in San Francisco. She wrote, "numb with loss, fatalistic about their own survival, unwilling to face a measure of sexual deprivation (or deprive themselves of sex), and eager for the attention showered on the sick and the dying, are again practicing unprotected anal intercourse. Experts say this behavior is increasing the infection rates." She interviewed a 32 year old airline mechanic recently infected with HIV, he said, "I though if I was HIV positive I'd be so much gayer, people are looking for the red badge of courage and you get that when you convert from being HIV negative to being HIV positive." They love the attention they get when they get sick.

We must not allow the dominate media culture to pass homosexuality off as "just another lifestyle choice", equal to that of the heterosexual. It is not!. It is dangerous behavior which destroys the one practicing it, as well as the society that condones it.

CORRECTION TO ALERT

The OFSA alert above mistakenly cited the OKC mayor for the editorial - the editorial contains no author and according to an editor at the paper, the mayor has not written an editorial for the named paper. Please refer to the corrected newsletter printed below. The newspaper story is the same, so refer to Plan2Succeed's post to read the editorial.

Plan2Succeed took NO part in writing this alert. It was my mistake. We are separate orgs.

As such, the alert should read as follows:

(TIME SENSITIVE; FOR IMMEDIATE CIRCULATION)

March 13, 2006

(Hyperlinks in Text)

Oklahoma State Representative Sally Kern has a bill, House Bill 2158, which will go to the floor for a vote very soon, perhaps within the week. According to the Library Stories blog, the Friday (March 10) editorial in the Daily Oklahoman condemns the fine State Representative for her efforts to restrict funding from public libraries unless they re-shelve obscene materials and books regarding homosexuality to a section where only adults can sign for same. She is only doing her job.

The editorial calls the bill “ironic” and says it removes local control. That the buck will stop at the parent is local control. It just isn’t library control. The story is below as registration is required for viewing, and some may not want to do this.

Additionally, the Tulsa City-County Library posted its say on their website, also condemning Representative Kern’s bill. Part of the TCCL’s statement says that they encourage parental involvement. This is reflective of the ALA and typical of librarians across the country when anyone looks to protect children. If the libraries want parental involvement in selecting books for children and they want parents to stay near their children, then what is their problem with having a parent check out these explicit materials for their children?

The major city-county libraries shelve their books with a teen section, a children’s section and then a fiction section where adult reads are available. It would cost them no more to move the smutty books, bought and paid for by the Oklahoman taxpayer. In fact, it would free up space in the younger sections for libraries to add sophisticated reading such as Pride and Prejudice or Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

OFSA wonders what would happen to libraries if they were to only receive funding from those who want children to have access to vulgar material. Would there be many libraries in this state?

OFSA supports Representative Kern and her bill. If you support same, there is action you can take:

® Bloggers can assist by posting this Library Alert.

® Oklahomans can click here to enter their address and find their representative. You can simply ask that they support the bill.

® Anyone can write a small letter of encouragement to Representative Kern at sallykern@okhouse.gov. She is an ally and an inspiration to OFSA.

® Anyone can also write a letter to the editor at the Daily Oklahoman and respond to editorial: Yourviews@oklahoman.com

® As always, pass it on.

Regards,

Lyn Rahman
OFSA
www.operationinformation.net
http://oklahomansforschoolaccountability.blogspot.com/

So happy you asked. Let's take, for example, the book just awarded the ALA's top honor for children as young as 12. Mind you, now, the book got the ALA's top award. This is the ALA's view of the best of the best. Quoting now from the book:

"Lara unbuttoned my pants and pulled my boxers down a little and pulled out my penis.
     "Wow," she said.
     "What?"
     She looked up at me, but didn't move, her face nanometers away from my penis. "It's weird."
     What do you mean by "weird?"
     "Just beeg, I guess."
     I could live with that kind of weird. And then she wrapped her hand around it and put it into her mouth."

So let me turn the questions around. Is that not sexually explicit? Is there anyone who would not categorize it that way? Is this Shakespeare? Is this suitable for young readers?

I see this as hard core pornography. Is there anyone out there that does not agree with this characterization? I see hard core pornography being chosen by the ALA as the very best book of 2006 for children as young as 12. Can anyone argue this is not the case?

If anyone gave hard core pornography to twelve year olds, would there be any consequences? What would happen in the child's mind? What would happen to the person who gave the child the material? Have any criminal statutes been violated? Have any federal laws been violated? Does the porn pusher's profession provide immunity from criminal resposibility? How about from moral responsibility? If it is not a problem for children to have placed into their hands hard core pornography, why have such laws in the first place? Where public school educators and public librarians are exempted from laws prohibiting the transmission of pornography to children, what is the reason for this? How did such exemptions come about? Did the ACLU, ALA, and the NEA lobby for such exemptions? Why? Why should a librarian be able to give a 12 year old hard core pornography but a library patron, say one viewing porn on unfiltered computers, is not protected from legal liability?

I'll bet I could sit here and think up a lot more questions, questions about why we are here in the first place. Why are we discussing how to judge the porn given to children and who's to decide whether it's porn or not? Why are librarians awarding hard core porn books as the best books for children as young as 12? Why does the ALA call a 12 year old a "young adult" when the child is not yet even a teenager? How does the ALA get away with violations of multiple state laws on a massive scale, or at least so it would appear to me? Why does the public not stop the ALA from recommending hard core porn for 12 year olds? Who are librarians in the first place that they have taken upon themselves the role of arbiters of the best reading material for young children -- did any of their library science classes cover children's literature more than someone in another profession with another degree who is a real, not an ersatz, expert in children's literature? Why does the ALA organize and train hundreds of lawyers to ensure children have unfettered access to any material whatsoever, no matter how inappropriate?

I really look forward to your responses to the issues I have raised.

Perhaps the following excerpts from books found in the Children and Young Adult (=minor children between 12 to 17) Departments of Public Libraries will tell you if these are "sexually explicit" or educational books!

“The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky (grade 9 up, according to School Library Journal Review):
“… she grabbed his p**** with her hands and started moving it…. the boy pushed the girl's head down, and she started to kiss his p****…. she stopped crying because he put his p**** in her mouth….”

“Looking for Alaska: a Novel” by John Green:
"Have you ever gotten a blow job?"
[…] "I think I want to," she said, and we kissed a little, and then […] Lara unbuttoned my pants and pulled my boxers down a little and pulled out my p****. […] And then she wrapped her hand around it and put it into her mouth. […] Should I do sometheeng?"
"Um. I don't know," I said. Everything I'd learned from watching p*rn with Alaska suddenly exited my brain. […] "Um. Maybe we should ask Alaska."
[Alaska] walked into the bathroom, returned with a tube of toothpaste, and showed us. In detail.
[…] It was my first orgasm with a girl […]."

It's Perfectly Normal: A Book about Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health, by Robie H. Harris:
“In all from front to back, there are three openings between a female’s legs: the opening to her urethra, the opening for her vagina, and her anus. If a girl or woman is curious about what these openings look like, she can hold a mirror between her legs and take a look.” “[…] sexual intercourse happens when a female and a male feel very sexy…the male’s penis goes inside the female’s vagina.” “A girl often rubs her clitoris; a boy often rubs his penis.” (This picture has pictures of boys having erections and a boy masturbating)

Tenderness, Robert Cormier. Excerpts from the book: “Eric began with.… kittens. Liked to hold them…. stroke them, feel the brittle bones.... break if you pressed too hard, caresses too hard. Which he did, impossible to resist.... place his hands over their faces and feel them go beautifully limp.... Hated violence but couldn’t help it. Enjoyed it…. the real problem was disposal…. burial.”

Stuck Rubber Baby, by Howard Cruse:
“Y’know one of the good things about queer sex, Les…? Nobody gets pregnant.” (This cartoon book shows two men in the shower kissing and rubbing each others bodies; it also has depictions of a couple having sex)

Would you like your minor children to read this? Your comparison to Shakespeare is ludicrous. This is a very serious subject.

March 16, 2006 -- OFSA Statement Regarding H.B. 2158 (For Immediate Circulation)

We are pleased to announce that late last night, Representative Sally Kern’s House Bill 2158 passed in the Oklahoma House of Representatives (60-33). For fact checking purposes, there are references below. The bill will now advance to the Senate, controlled by Democrats. If passed, public libraries must relocate the sexually explicit and pro-homosexual books to where only adults may check them out. We will continue to track the bill and keep you informed.

Representative Kern said on the floor last night, “…our children are our greatest possession.” We agree. OFSA applauds the good representative and her efforts. We also applaud Representatives who voted in favor of the bill. Further, we thank everyone in Oklahoma and in other states for acting without haste to express their support.

Please note that with this bill, we won a battle in the war for our children. It is not over for Oklahomans and for many others elsewhere. As such, we remain committed to continue fighting this war with all of you until our children are completely free from the arms of the American Library Association.

Regards,

Lyn Rahman

OFSA

www.operationinformation.com

http://oklahomansforschoolaccountability.blogspot.com/

FACT CHECKING

To see the votes: http://www.lsb.state.ok.us/house/50LEG/okh02199.txt

(If that does not work go to: http://www.okhouse.gov, cursor over Legislation, click Votes in the dropdown box)

Third Reading - Daily House Journal for March 15, page 909 (in .pdf on page 75) http://www.okhouse.gov/Journals/HJ2006/2006%20HLeg%20Day%2023.pdf

http://newsok.com/article/1788798/ (may require registration)

House backs curbs to book access
By Jennifer Mock
Capitol Bureau

Libraries would have to restrict explicit titles or lose funding.

Legislation passed by the House of Representatives late Wednesday would withhold public library funding if books containing sexually explicit or homosexual content are not placed in an adult-only section.

House Bill 2158, by Rep. Sally Kern, R-Oklahoma City, would require public libraries in the state to segregate books recommended by a newly formed State Library Material Content Advisory Board, or risk losing state funding.

According to the bill, the books must contain specific and graphic sexual references, not just mention sex. Books containing homosexual themes must recruit and advocate same gender sexual relationships before separation is required by the legislation.

Supporters of the bill say parents should decide whether their children can have access to these books.

"Libraries and librarians should not be usurping the role of parents," Kern said. "You can't sell toothpaste without sex. Our society is obsessed with sex. And I will tell you this, the American Library Association is out to sexualize our children."

But, opponents, including the Oklahoma Library Association, say the legislation removes local control and will cost libraries -- especially rural libraries -- already-limited funds.

No appeals process
Many librarians also worry the bill is too subjective, and question the number of books that would have to be moved.

Rep. Glen Bud Smithson, D-Sallisaw, opposed the bill because it doesn't give libraries an appeals process to fight a loss of funding. He likened the bill to legislation Osama bin Laden likely would support, saying "that is the way they do it over there. They teach them what they want to teach them and nothing else."

The library systems in Oklahoma City and Tulsa have already moved many books containing questionable material, but Kern said they have not gone far enough, saying the move was merely a "token gesture."

"If they want local control, then let them use only local dollars," Kern said. "They are using state dollars, which gives us the authority to intervene."

Rep. Mike Wilt, R-Bartlesville, said he believes children should not be exposed to explicit material, but that decision should be left up to the local library boards. He said this bill is no different than when the federal government passes unfunded mandates onto local governments.

"How many times are we going to run a state bill to fix an Oklahoma City problem?" he said.

An advisory board cannot decide what books should be included in each diverse, local community, said Rep. Debbie Blackburn, D-Oklahoma City.

"It doesn't seem that you can legislate morality. This is a slippery slope," she said. "Once you start with one thing, where do you go from there?"

The bill passed the House late Wednesday after more than two hours of discussion with a vote of 60-33 and likely faces an uphill battle in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

In response to cries of censorship in another article, I wrote the following:

All. Censorship is not the issue. Censorship is a mischaracterization used to manipulate people to think one thing when the other is actually true. In this case, censorship is used to make you think moving books out of the children's section is wrong, even illegal, and should not be done.

Quite the opposite is true. Moving books out of the children's section that do not belong there in the first place is not censorship. Would moving Playboy magazine out of the children's section be censorship? Who put Playboy in the children's section in the first place, why, and what can be done to stop that?

Keeping children from reading sexually inappropriate material is not censorship. Is it censorship to stop a child from reading Playboy magazine? (Actually, the de facto leader of the ALA thinks parents who care give their children Playboy.)

Acting in accordance with existing law, including US Supreme Court law such as in US v. American Library Association [ALA] or Board of Education v. Pico is not censorship. In both cases, the former about Internet filters and the latter about public school books, the Court found or the parties stipulated that is was perfectly appropriate to keep children from sexually inappropriate material. The ALA says the opposite right in its so-called Library Bill of Rights. Are the people crying "Censorship" saying the US Supreme Court is in favor of censorship?

When the ALA loses, and loses big, in the 2003 case of US v. ALA on the issue of censorship, among others, is it entitled to misrepresent the facts and law about censorship by omission or commission?

Is censorship present merely because the ALA-trained librarians are crying as loud as they can about censorship? Words like Taliban, Iran get thrown around? Is the shrillest voice the winner?

Daniel Gerstein is an independent consultant and former communications director for Joseph Lieberman and a senior strategist for his presidential campaign. He said, "The ... elites have convinced themselves that they are taking a stand against cultural tyranny. .... [T]he reality is that it is those who cry 'Censorship!' the loudest who are the ones trying to stifle speech and force their moral world-view on others." Is Mr. Gerstein wrong?

In anticipation of your next question, being who is to decide what's inappropriate, all I can say is the material of concern is so inappropriate that I can repeat it here because of this forum's restriction against the posting of pornographic material.

Let me provide a clue. The ALA just awarded the 2006 Michael L. Printz award for excellence in "young adult" literature to Looking For Alaska by John Green. "Young adults" are defined by the ALA to be as young as 12. In Orwellian fashion, you're not even a teenager yet and you're already an adult. Well the book contains hard core pornographic activity in it. Read it yourself.

So the ALA awards hard corn porn with the best book of the year award for 12 year olds and up. The best! 12 year olds. Hard core porn. Are citizens supposed to go along with this just because the ALA gives it their "academy award" of awards for "young adults"?

Speaking of local control, do the locals control the library or does the ALA?

Really, you need to get educated, lose the bias, and see through the ALA/ACLU propaganda. Start by reading US v. ALA, then read Board of Education v. Pico.

For more information, please see SafeLibraries.org - Are Children Safe in Public Libraries.

Thank you.

(FOR IMMEDIATE CIRCULATION)

April 7, 2006

April 6th was the deadline for submitting committee reports. Despite the actions of OFSA and all who urged the Subcommittee to hear the public library bill on its merits, the Senators failed to act and have therefore killed HB 2158.

Determining the fate of House Bill 2158 with an up or down vote was too much for Senate liberals to handle in an election year. Voting no would alienate voters, while voting yes would alienate potential campaign contributors. To place sound legislation under the table without further consideration is a classic liberal tactic. That the well-being of children is at stake is irrelevant to them.

Regardless of the recent loss, it is not a total defeat. OFSA remains committed to this fight, and we thank each and every one of you for the actions you have taken. We especially thank Representative Kern for her hard work on the public library bill and exposing the ALA to other elected officials in this state*.

Sincerely,

Lyn Rahman

Oklahomans for School Accountability

http://www.operationinformation.com

* Representative Kern responds to the Senate’s failure to act on pro-family measures adopted by the House: http://www.okhouse.gov//OkhouseMedia/pressroom.aspx?NewsID=676

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