To the editor:
It wasn't that long ago that signs reading "whites only" or "colored bathrooms" were in many public spaces.
How many of us are aware of the current brand of sequestration being attempted at Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County of LGBTQIA+ materials? We are not living in a theological society -- much to the chagrin of local sectarians, we are a country without national religion or language, by design.
The library doesn't want lawsuits or to infringe upon the civil liberties of a protected community. For 14 months, the OVNOW chapter and members of the LGBTQIA+ community have spoken out to stop the attempts at relocating materials deemed offensive by the denominationalists who advocate for severe isolation of any materials that stray outside their personal religious morality.
During meetings, they refer over and over to the safety of the children while their own children are alone in the children's section that the parents claim to be so oppressed about policing for "sexually inappropriate" material. During one meeting there were no fewer than 13 children left to their own devices in that very area.
Everyone deserves and needs breaks from their children, but you can't inculpate ineptitude of librarians/libraries at choosing age-appropriate books but ask them to babysit for you (free). Any changes to the books available, in the sections assigned for them, is an attempt to circumvent the law. Stickers and any other demarcation to books is an attack on personal liberties of the public reader who might suffer discrimination over the displayed sticker.
Everyone deserves privacy and dignity in a public space. The audacity of the "what-about-the-children" crowd isn't lost on the library staff, stuck as de facto caregivers during meetings so the parents can berate and admonish them. People who are qualified to choose, assemble and distribute the current repository of PLSJ are educated and may have a master's of library and information science.
On a personal note, I have survived breast cancer twice and have endured and thrived after a double mastectomy. One of the zealots recently referred to a book about families and love. One of the parents in the book clearly had mastectomy scars, implied to represent a masculinizing surgery. The speaker was simply appalled by the illustration of chest scars being presented to young children. As she made her diatribe against scars in public, I was mortified by her words of degradation.
I was reminded of the day I had the courage to finally wear my favorite overalls and a tank top to a local store. As I walked in, I was verbally assaulted by an octogenarian couple about my disgusting "tranny" appearance. I try to serve humanity with humility and love as my personal beliefs teach. It's my choice to suffer or enjoy triple what power I manifest and project to the universe.
The hypocrisy in fighting (so hard) to exclude and demean an entire community while representing a faith that preaches love and forgiveness, without judgment, is repulsive.
The board's next meeting will be at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
Rosie Dennis
Brilliant