WE ARE THE MURAL. WE ARE THE DISPLAY.

 

WE ARE THE MURAL. WE ARE THE DISPLAY.

Public libraries are under assault all around the nation.

That is true where I live. The Okefenokee Regional Library System has had to contend with a rowdy group of extremists who want the library to only reflect "Seven Mountains"* values. They want no acknowledgment of the LGBTQ+ community. They want to restrict and sanitize history, particularly when dealing with people of color.  

This rowdy group, mainly from a small handful of churches, has been flooding library board meetings, spewing their hatred under the guise of "protecting the children," of fear of indoctrination, whether it the LGBTQ+ community, or a fair, open reading of history., or anything that doesn't espouse a Christian Right point of view.

This group has significantly intimidated local politicians (county and city boards) who nominate new library board members, and some boards have now swung to a radical, anti-library agenda.

Now they have control of the regional board, they have adopted a policy banning all displays not directly related to a national holiday.

Yes. That's right. No more displays for Black History Month, Asian/Pacific History Month, Valentine's,  Women's History Month, Hispanic Heritage Month, National Disability Employment Awareness Month, Native American Heritage Month. Nothing about the military or vets unless it's tied to a specific holiday. Nothing about awareness and knowledge of child sexual abuse, medical information, and community support. They may be pulling down displays for any book clubs, which include an LGBTQ+ book club and a heathen book club.

Why? Because their hatred of the LGBTQ+ community is so intense that they are willing to take everything else out just to ensure they are excluded.

When the rainbow banners were taken down, the mural pictured above was the compromise to replace it. At that time, even most of the conservative board members were willing to support it. But then the pressure campaign started, and some turned into Peter, denying they ever supported it.

I understand that the board leans towards taking the mural down, but there are some logistic issues, like the fact that it's bolted to the wall. So the effective, final decision on it will be at a subsequent meeting.

In the meantime, I wanted as many people as possible to show their support for an open library and the Libraries are for Everyone mural. I posted the picture above on social media, and the response has been overwhelming within my tiny media world. It's been reposted to several sites, including a national group with over 1.4 million subscribers. Just from the ones I have directly posted, it has around 1,400 likes and 364 shares. This is miles more than anything else I've posted. I've tried for over ten years to get that kind of support on this blog and cannot measure up to that.  

Don't let those who SAY they are exposing Christian right values overwhelm us. Show your support now in whatever you can.

Make sure your library knows you appreciate what they do and that you support a free, open public library. The next Okefenokee Regional Library Board meeting will be November 6th.  Be there if you can.  You know that the extremists will still be out in force.

* Seven Mountains is an extremist organization that wants to replace democracy with a theocratic autocracy. One of their goals is to take control of all public spaces, like public libraries and public schools. The "seven mountains of influence" they want to control are: religion, family, education, government, media, arts and entertainment, and business.