"Parents rights" group threatens LGBTQ+ book providers

A leader of a Utah “parents' rights” group has proposed utilising a state anti-p*rnography law to prosecute individuals who provide banned books in Little Free Libraries, which are small public book collections available for borrowing. This suggestion followed an announcement by a state legislator who planned to place recently banned books into these libraries.

In late September, Utah state Representative Sahara Hayes (D) shared an Instagram video to mark Banned Books Week, stating her intention to place books banned by local school districts into Little Free Libraries around the district. “In the past year, the legislature passed even more laws that make it easier to ban books in schools," Hayes mentioned in the video, pointing out that the state recently prohibited 13 titles in public schools to “[protect] children from the harmful effects of illicit pornography.”

As ‘LGBTQ Nation’ writes, books banned in various districts include LGBTQ+-inclusive titles such as ‘Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda,’ ‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower,’ and ‘The Color Purple,’ along with other well-known literary works like ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,’ ‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ and ‘Catch 22.’

Referring to a stack of books in the back of a car, Hayes encouraged, “We hope you’ll come and find some and maybe read a banned book for yourself, see what all the fuss is about.”

In response, Brooke Stephens, a leader of Utah Parents United—a self-described parents’ rights group advocating for book bans and opposing transgender-inclusive school policies—wrote in her book-banning Facebook group that Hayes had distributed a copy of ‘Gender Queer: A Memoir’ by Maia Kobabe. This graphic novel is often cited by anti-LGBTQ+ book-banning advocates due to its sexually explicit content and suggestive illustrations.

“In Utah, it’s always been illegal to give children explicit content,” Stephens wrote. “[A] person who provides the Little Free Library on their private property could also be held accountable. Private property doesn’t mean you don’t need to follow the law.”

Stephens shared an image with her Facebook post showing that distributing or exhibiting pornographic material by an adult is a third-degree felony, carrying a minimum fine of $1,000 (approximately £765) and a minimum prison term of 30 days.

Stephens also urged her Facebook audience to vote for Hayes' political opponent. Salt Lake City police informed the news outlet Axios that they had not received any complaints about Hayes’ book-sharing activities. Utah defence attorney Clayton Simms told KUTV that Hayes’ actions appear not to violate any laws.

“If you’re offering free copies of these books, people are free to choose whether they want to read them or not,” Simms stated.

State Representative Ken Ivory (R) expressed concerns that Hayes’ actions are “very potentially” illegal, questioning, “Is there no limit on how sexually graphic the content is that we give to children from kindergarten to 12th grade in public school?”

Nevertheless, Peter Bromberg, a policy advocate for the Utah Library Association, told the publication that Stephens’ threat could intimidate volunteers managing Little Free Libraries. “If you’re someone who runs a Little Free Library, you have to make the choice: ‘Am I going to put these things in there and take the chance’ [of a pornography charge],” Bromberg said. “Even having that levied against you as an accusation — forget if you can actually defend yourself in court. … Are you going to be targeted? Your address is public, your Little Free Library is public. Are you going to be vandalized? Are you going to be threatened?”