Another attempt at censorship
EDITOR:
Myra Mansfield’s letter to the editor this past week (8-30-23) titled “Sign the Petition” is more of the same in the discussion about censorship. Her pleading letter is short on facts and long on trying to tilt the facts that do exist to support her side of the argument.
In her letter she tells us that “around 1,000 people” have signed the petition.
Then she quickly states that when “thousands of people agree that books should be removed,” then the standard is established by those “majority voices.”
Do you see how clever the right-wing Republicans can be in disguising their intents. The GOP argument from Ms. Mansfield goes quickly from “around 1,000 people” to “thousands of people” and concludes with “those majority voices.”
And then she has the audacity to claim that “those who cry accusations of ‘book banning’” are using scare tactics.
This petition is just another attempt to allow the GOP to control the libraries with them in charge of censorship. Anderson County just went through a lengthy (and local) process to refine the laws around what books should be allowed for what age groups.
Sensible restrictions are already in place and they were voted on and passed by the county commission with plenty of input from the library board, the public and the sheriff. And there is now in place a method for a challenge as to what meets or does not meet the new restrictions.
This petition is just another attempt at censorship controlled by a few; stop this encroaching nonsense before we have no public libraries left.
James J. Wilson
Anderson County
