By this time you all know the LCPS School Board affirmed the Superintendent’s decision to retain Jack of Hearts and other Parts in full circulation availability at Mayfield High School. A decision we solemnly expected if not predicted and is undoubtedly lively ‘water cooler’ fodder at the Mayfield and Branigan Libraries circle of friends.
There were comments made by all of the Board members explaining their personal decision process in validating the legitimacy of the books literary value. I would encourage you to listen and watch the video to hear each one of them.
The Mayfield Librarian claimed disbelief that anyone would ignore esteemed and learned organizations and their endorsement of what is appropriate and of value for young teens of today. They are the ‘trusted experts’ in understanding what kids need and want. The Am Academy of Pediatricians, the Am. Library Assoc., Am Assoc. of School Librarians, Young Adult Book Reviews and others…even the books Author who believes a book like his is NEEDED for children.
As I squirmed in my seat after hearing her comments about ‘experts’- the years of 2020 – 22 flashed in my mind as I recalled the ‘expert’ advice of the CDC, FDA, WHO, Amer. Academy of Physicians and Surgeons, the Amer. Academy of Pediatrics, the NM Health Department – and others —as they railed at the world to mask toddlers, close schools for months at a time, stand 6 feet apart and for goodness sake don’t sing in church – if you even GET to go to church. Personally I’ve stopped trusting ‘experts’ on almost anything these days after being coerced into taking an experimental unproven ‘vaccination’ that now has ramifications for decades to come. These same ‘experts’ are also saying it’s the right thing to surgically disfigure and medically alter with ‘natural’ hormones in perfectly healthy children. Apparently their suggestion to expose kids to sexually charged literature is ok because they say so? — hard NO and hard pass.
I also squirmed when hearing we are ‘privileged’ to be able to go to the public library to find a book we wanted aside from buying it. How quickly we have forgotten the thousands of children who walked to country or small town classrooms and local libraries (myself as one of them), decades ago. We were hungry and motivated to walk to check out a book we wanted. Certainly not ‘privileged’. Abraham Lincoln, Booker T Washington and countless leaders willingly made the journey to public libraries to gain access to books they wanted. Today, if a child wants a book there are endless social ways to obtain it.
Someone once said in Charlottesville, VA several years ago-“Good and decent people are on both sides of this issue”- Sorry, that didn’t end well…but you get my point. Many of us see clearly that exposing children to sexually charged material is mentally unhealthy. They are emotionally unable to process the scenarios in a healthy and formative way. Trusting they will, because authorities ‘say so’, just doesn’t cut it for many of us. Many folks ‘on the other side’ believe there is no limit to what children should be able to have access to. I disagree.
No one knows a child better than their parent. If perverse ideologies are being made available to children parents have a right to be informed. They pay for that right by using the public school system. And if parents are informed they make the best decisions accordingly. I’m going to pledge to continue to inform Las Cruces parents of what is available for their child on the shelves of the public school library. And to beware.
Beth Bousquet, BSN RN
2nd Vice Chair CCIA
