A proposed law in Missouri could see librarians jailed if they provide material deemed inappropriate to children. The new law calls for the creation of panels of local parents, who will determine if any books that contain "age-inappropriate sexual material" should be removed from the shelves.
Any libraries that refuse to remove the books would see their funding cut. In addition, any library employee who provides the books could face misdemeanor charges and be punished with a $500 fine or a maximum jail sentence of one year.
The bill's sponsor, Missouri House Rep. Ben Baker, said that the law is about giving power back to parents.
"The main thing is, I want to be able to take my kids to a library and make sure they're in a safe environment, and that they're not gonna be exposed to something that is objectionable material," Baker told KOAM-TV. "Unfortunately, there are some libraries in the state of Missouri that have done this. And that's a problem."
The bill is facing stiff opposition from opponents who claim the act is a form of censorship.
"I was contacted by my fellow directors across the state. They're all very, very upset about it. The Missouri Library Association's very aware of it, so also is the American Library Association at a federal level," Carrie Cline, Director of the Neosho Newton County Library, told the news station.
Others have said the new law could be used to ban books that feature LGBTQIA+ characters.
"This is a shockingly transparent attempt to legalize book banning in the state of Missouri," said James Tager, deputy director of Free Expression Research and Policy at PEN America. "This act is clearly aimed at empowering small groups of parents to appoint themselves as censors over their state's public libraries. Books wrestling with sexual themes, books uplifting LGBTQIA+ characters, books addressing issues such as sexual assault—all of these books are potentially on the chopping block if this bill is passed."
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