Greenville Library committee votes to move transgender books
A committee of the Greenville County library system has voted to remove books containing transgender characters or themes recommended for 13- to 17-year-olds from the adult section.
During a meeting of the Library Materials Committee, which is tasked with making recommendations to the full board on reappraisal requests and policies regarding materials within the library system, Marcia Moston, the committee’s chair, presented the proposed revision to the Collection Development and Preservation policy on Friday.
Books that feature a character who has transitioned or is transitioning from “a gender corresponding to their biological sex to another gender” will, if approved by the full panel, be placed in the adult section. This includes books with illustrations or themes that “celebrate, depict or advocate gender transition, whether social or physical changes.”
The revised version will be presented to the full Board of Trustees for consideration during a meeting to be held at noon on August 26 at the Hughes Main Library.
If approved, those under 17 would still be able to borrow the book if they get a library card that allows them to borrow books from all departments. Parents or guardians would have to verify access on a library application. The measure would mean that no books with transgender characters or themes could be in the children’s or young adult sections, after the board approved a similar policy for those under 12 earlier this year.
More: “This book is garbage”: The GCLS Board of Directors moves all books about transgender youth to the PEC department
Board members, including Moston, Gene Beckner, Elizabeth Collins and Tommy Hughes, unanimously approved the changes in a brief meeting that lasted no more than 15 minutes.
Hughes said he was not sure the updated policy would meet “legal requirements” and would “take another look” to prevent any problems. However, he supported and agreed with the policy revision.
Beckner said the new policy is consistent with a provision in South Carolina’s state budget that states that before receiving state funding, county libraries must certify to the state library that they will not offer books or materials in the children’s, young adult or teen book departments that appeal to the prurient interests of children under 17 and will only be made available with the express consent of parents.”
Beverly James, executive director of the Greenville County Library System, said the state library has asked the attorney general for his opinion on the restriction.
“I’m not aware that it has any connection to what Marcia is proposing,” said James, who also confirmed that the State Library is monitoring enforcement of the clause.
A statement from the State Attorney General’s Office is not yet available.
So far, James said, the State Library has created a form that libraries can use to confirm that the collection development policy includes a request for a review process.
“That’s all we needed to take note of at this point,” James said.
It is not immediately clear how many books could be removed if the full board approved it.
An online search of the library system’s holdings reveals at least ten different titles under “Transgender Literature” in the young adult section.
The “culture war” continues
The revision of the guidelines came six months after the same committee removed all materials for the 0-12 age group from the Parenting and Early Childhood collection that “discuss or depict the change of the physical sex of a minor in a manner inconsistent with the minor’s biological sex.”
This means that books that discuss “pronouns or clothing that do not correspond with biological sex” or puberty blockers or hormone replacement therapy have been moved out. Not every GCLS library has a PEC department. Books in the children’s section that depict transgender minors have been moved out of libraries without this department to a library with such a department.
The policy change highlights a long-running culture war that first made its way to the library board in 2022, when Greenville County Council members voted 9-3 against a resolution that would move all children’s books that “promote sexuality” to the adult section of all county libraries.
Last October, the library board voted to remove all themed displays unless they were for “paid holidays observed by both the Greenville County government and the Greenville County Library System.” The vote came after the board asked staff at the Travelers Rest branch to remove displays that read “Read with Pride” or “All Y’all / It Takes a Village to Make a Library” with book titles such as “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker and “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” by Tennessee Williams.
A month after the board voted to remove all thematic exhibits, 53 residents filed to run for a seat on the board of trustees, which is appointed by the Greenville County Council. Many applicants, including newcomers and incumbents, cited the ongoing culture war.
Allan Hill, the current chair of the Library Board, wrote that he was running for re-election after serving on the board since 2000 to “ensure conservative public representation on the Library Board.”
“Strong leadership is needed to help the library remain a neutral zone in the current culture wars, to avoid the appearance that the library is taking sides or promoting a particular agenda over another,” Hill wrote in the motion.
Moreover, the culture war has not only reached the district library and does not only affect the display of books.
The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom found that the number of book challenges increased 65% in 2023 compared to 2022, reaching the highest level ever documented by the ALA. Books “representing the voices and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC people accounted for 47 percent of books targeted by censorship attempts.”
Savannah Moss covers politics for the Greenville News. Reach her at [email protected] or follow her @Savmoss.
