Event at Fireside Books August 1st

I'd like to encourage everyone that can to attend the following event at Fireside Books & Gifts this Saturday, August 1st. If you are unable to attend, please show your support of Fireside Books, its events and personnel by visiting the store very soon to select a new book or make another purchase.

As an independent bookstore (formerly a Little Professor Book center location), Fireside Bookshas provided invaluable, helpful, knowledgable and courteous service to this community for more than 25 years. Some residents have announced boycotting the store and encouraged others (through blogs and other websites) to do the same.

Show your support of Fireside Books. Attend the event and/or patronize the store.

PRESS RELEASE

On Saturday, August 1, Fireside Books and Gifts in West Bend will host the authors of a book that everyone in the area should read.

In light of the controversy that has enflamed passions on both sides of the censorship issue and led to the non-reappointment of public library board members, this is an opportunity for community members to look at one aspect of the issue from the viewpoint of a couple who speak from very real personal experience.

Paul and Hjordy Wagner know what it's like to have a child come out of the sexual orientation closet. In fact, they?ve had that experience not once, but twice. Both of their sons are gay. Their book "Ready or Not? They're Gay" tells the story of their acceptance of their sons' sexual identities and encourages others--in a non-confrontational and loving way--to come to the same acceptance of gay and lesbian young people in our society.

The Wagners--who live in Eau Claire--embraced their sons' sexuality immediately, but they soon realized that for many other families the transition is not easy or smooth. Many young gay people today--if they muster the courage to come out to their families at all--are ostracized, even abandoned, by their loved ones. " Ready or Not?" attempts to equip other families with the attitude and compassion to help them accept the news of a gay child or loved one in a healthy, positive way.

In addition to the Wagners' personal experience, the book includes a range of perspectives from their circle of family and friends. It offers sensible guidance for parents and teachers of gay students and provides suggestions from the GLBT community on how to make the coming-out conversation more loving and sincere.

The event on August 1 will begin at 10:30 a.m. The Wagners will begin with a short talk and then answer questions from the audience. Afterwards they will sign copies of their book.

Those interested in attending should call the store (at 262-334-1444) to reserve a seat. Fireside Books and Gifts is located at 1331 West Paradise Drive, between Wal-Mart and Office Max.

Read In at the Library May 29th 3:00pm-6:00pm

Please join West Bend Parents for Free Speech as we participate in the Read In organized by Jake Jurss of West Bend.

Participants can meet at the corner of Oak and 5th at 3:00pm and walk to the library. (If you can't join us right at 3:00pm, simply come when you can!) Bring along (or plan to check out) a book from a banned bookslist/website (search banned books on Yahoo or Google for ideas, or visit Adler Books: Books Banned in the United States.) Participants are encouraged to quietly read their books inside or outside the library. Jake has a library room reserved and there may be a presentation/discussion of books discussed in the current West Bend issue and/or of the history of book banning in general.

Look for West Bend Parents for Free Speech and if you have not already done so, sign our petition to protect the library from attempts at censorship!

If you will be participating, please make yourself a nametag to wear. A lot of us have "met" online but not in person; we'd like to connect names to faces!

When the library closes at 6:00pm (summer library hours are now in effect!) some participants willbe walking to Regner Park for a (bring your own) potluck style picnic.

Can WBCFSL Parent Your Children Better Than You Can?

Lately the Daily News has had several letters to the editor in which the authors ask, "what would be so wrong in moving these books?" Let's address that question with a few more.

If we (the community) allow the library to enact a policy that allows books to be classified (or reclassified) based on someone's subjective opinion on how explicit the sexual content is(WBCFSL's latest request....they no longer want to ban books or move books), what would happen? Well, first the library would have to develop criteria to determine what would be considered sexual content, and a scale to determine at what point the material is too explicit for a minor audience. How much (in taxpayer dollars and library resources) would this take? WBCFSL has suggested this policy but makes no recommendations as to how it would be enacted and how it would be payed for.

After the policy criteria was determined, someone would have to read through all of the materials in the Young Adult and Juvenile/Children's section of the library to determine which books need to be reclassified. Who would do this (i.e., an individual, such as a member of the staff, or a committee) and who would pay for this (the taxpayer)?

When the policy is enacted, how would challenges be handled? When the library is faced with numerous lawsuits because this policy/procedure is unconstitutional, who would pay for the legal expenses (taxpayers/City of West Bend)?

Ginny Maziarka of WBCFSL has said that she agrees (link; read comments) she does not have the right to decide what is appropriate for children other than her own. However, the petition asks for the creation of a policy that will make these determinations for others.

Really, this whole debate comes down to this question: who do you want to decide what is appropriate for your kids....you, or WBCFSL?

Don't Be Fooled

It seems to me that whenever someone disagrees with Ginny Maziarka and her viewpoint on this library issue, it is because they just "don't understand" what she's asking for. As I have told her, I do understand, and I still don't agree.

It wouldn't surprise me if local residents did not understand Ginny's complaint. After all, it has constantly changed. She often complains in her blog that they are not asking to ban books, and they are not going after specific titles. That may be true now, but that is what they asked for and did in the past.

She seems to think that what they have asked for is not censorship. You be the judge; do you consider it censorship when material that is universally considered to be for a Young Adult audience is moved to an adult section or labeled in such a way to make those books taboo? Do you think it is fair or wise to move books on the basis that some in the community may find them offensive?

The Maziarkas have been very skilled at changing their tune and tweaking their complaint to make it more likely that people will jump on their bandwagon. But let us not forget that their complaint did begin with a complaint about books they felt were "pro-homosexual" and that all of the books they originally objected to came from a list of books with LGBT themes and characters. Let us not forget that they did ask for some of these books to be banned. Then they changed their complaint and made it about material they felt was sexually explicit, throwing the word pornography around to create furor in the community. They instead asked for books to be reclassified or moved, and asked for labels on materials that were sexually explicit. Now they've said that they are no longer asking for these things, they are asking for policy changes that will "protect" the community.

Ginny and Jim Maziarka, thanks but no thanks. I don't need your help in protecting my children from material I don't find appropriate, and I certainly don't want your help in determining what is or isn't appropriate for them or using your morality as my family's compass. I find it hard to believe that others in this community want that, to give up their rights as parents to make those kinds of decisions.

Parents, if you don't like what your kids are reading, take it away, or better yet, have a conversation about it. But don't try to censor the collection of our public library, which is meant to serve the entire community. You may not like all the materials in the collection, and you have the right not to read anything you find offensive or objectionable. But you don't have the right to take materials away from other patrons, restrict access to them, make them harder to find, or label them as obscene simply based on your opinion or moral judgment.

Petition Signing

West Bend Citizens for Free Speech will be at West Bend Community Memorial Library on Wednesday, April 22 from 6:00-8:00pm. Stop by to sign our petition to protect the library's collection from attempts at censorship. You may also take home copies of the petition to collect signatures. Let's get together to discuss our viewpoints and where we should proceed from here!

I think we will be in the board room at the back of the first floor of the library. Stop by to show your support.

West Bend Library issue

Please visit my website to get more info on my views on the West Bend library issue. Please stay tuned here for info about our petition campaign. We will be circulating a petition to counter the Maziarkas' petition to censor books at the West Bend library.