As the Supreme Court said in Board of Education v. Removing these books because of objections to content is impermissible under the First Amendment. The books have reportedly been challenged by a member of the community who claims they contain “pornographic” images and are inappropriate for the library. On behalf of the National Coalition Against Censorship and the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund we strongly urge you to keep Craig Thompson’s Blankets and Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home in the Marshall Public Library. The CBLDF, in conjunction with the National Coalition Against Censorship, wrote a letter to the Marshall Public Library Board of Trustees explaining why Blankets and Fun Home could not be considered obscene and outlining the dangers of censorship: On October 4, 2006, the Marshall Public Library Board of Trustees held a hearing to determine the fate of Blankets and another challenged graphic novel - Fun Home by Alison Bechdel. After several months, the board ultimately approved a policy, which stated in part that the library would buy materials based on contemporary or social significance, critical acclaim, patron requests or popular demand, and “timeliness and/or significance of subject matter.” The library board decided to draft such a policy, but also opted to remove the two books from circulation during the development process. Mills also feared that the library would be frequented by the same people who go to porn shops.Īt the time of the challenge, the Marshall Public Library did not have an established materials selection policy, which would have laid out guidelines as to what types of items the library should buy. She likened the illustrations to pornography and was concerned that the comic art would attract children who would subsequently see the images she alleged were pornographic.
Louise Mills, a resident of Marshall, MO, filed a request with the Marshall Public Library Board of Trustees to have Blankets removed from the shelves because of the allegedly obscene illustrations. Graphic Novels: Suggestions for Librarians.Working With Libraries! A Handbook For Comics Creators.Know Your Rights: Student Rights Fact Sheet.Raising a Reader! How Comics & Graphic Novels Can Help Your Kids Love To Read!.Adding Graphic Novels to Your Library or Classroom Collection.
Kirkpatrick, NY State Court of Appeals (1973)
Des Moines Independent Community School District Obscenity Case Files: United States v.Pacifica Foundation (George Carlin’s Seven Dirty Words) Obscenity Case Files: People of New York v.
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