There has been a lot of misinformation and fear spread by opponents of HB 1239. Lets check the fears presented by the Brookings Public Library director with the actual facts of the bill.
Ms. Gustafson states that all of the material at the Brookings library already follows the states obscenity laws. She is correct that the library follows the current state law that specifically EXEMPTS libraries from the obscenity standard. HB 1239 merely seeks to make publicly-funded institutions follow the same laws that individuals and private businesses already follow. There are 7 states that have NEVER had this exception on the books: Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Oklahoma, Missouri, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. The following states have REPEALED the exemption just like HB 1239: Arkansas, Indiana, North Dakota, Montana, and Tennessee. I havent seen a single instance in the past 60 years where a librarian was hauled off to prison in any of those states. And that list includes both liberal and conservative leaning states.
Ms. Gustafson claims there is no way to tell what qualifies as Material Harmful to Minors. The state currently has no problem applying that 60-year-old standard to book stores and individuals. In fact it is a nationally accepted standard based on the Miller Test of the U.S. Supreme Court. The law specifically states that anything with serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value is not harmful to minors. So there is no danger of the Statue of David or your biology textbook violating the law. It is totally false that a librarian could be charged for accidentally allowing a child access to harmful material. The current statute (SDCL 22-24-29) clearly states that dissemination requires actual knowledge.
Ms. Gustafson is correct that parents are free to give their own children whatever material they wish, but if they give obscene material to someone elses children its a crime under current statute. We do not allow liquor stores to freely sell alcohol to minors under the argument that its up to the parents to keep them from drinking. In the same way those providing pornographic material should bare the burden of giving it only to adults.
Yes, a challenge process is available and it has been tried repeatedly by parents in the community. But any book challenges are met with the standard form letter denying the request based on the fact that some national group gave the book an award so that makes it good enough for kids as well. The Brookings Public Schools have seen 18 separate challenges to harmful books available to children in the district in the past two years. Sixteen of those challenges were denied out right and two resulted in the book being removed only from online middle school access. And where did the challenging parents check out the physical copies of the books in order to write their book reports? The youth section of the Brookings Public Library. Go ahead and read the books for yourself and tell me they dont contain pornography: All Boys Arent Blue, Like a Love Story, Flamer, What Girls Are Made Of. And those are only examples of the hundreds of obscene books currently available to children on the taxpayers dime.
So what would the world look like with the passage of HB 1239? Schools and libraries that are already keeping pornographic material out of the hands of children would see no change. There is no way to accidentally violate the law as it requires an affirmative act and actual knowledge of the material. In the instance where a parent identifies a pornographic book and successfully completes the challenge process to have the book removed, the school or library board is now on notice that the book must not be checked out to those under 18. The librarian can simply move the book to a designated adult section or give it a digital tag in the checkout system that only allows adult users to check out the book. It really is that simple.
Considering the 12 states that currently operate this way and the claim that most libraries are already keeping harmful materials from children, why is there such pushback? Please keep in mind that it is the American Library Association that is stirring up outrage. This is the same group that told our libraries they did not need to make any changes in response to last years unanimous book policy bill (HB 1197). It is also the organization that hands out book awards to clearly pornographic novels. All of that sure makes you question the motivations of the ALA, doesnt it? This is not a group that aligns with South Dakota values and should not be influencing what materials are available to our children. This should be up to local school districts and parents to decide. HB 1239 simply requires that parental concerns be taken seriously and boards respond to book challenges. Its just that simple. Ask your senator to vote yes on HB 1239.
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