Federal Judge Rules Crawford County Library Cannot Separate LGBT Books from Children’s Section

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Above: One of the pro-LGBT books at issue in Crawford County. The book is intended for children ages 5-9.

On Monday a federal judge in Fort Smith ruled the Crawford County Library cannot place pro-LGBT books in a “social section” separate from the library’s children’s section. The case underscores the growing division in Arkansas over public libraries being used to promote pro-LGBT material to kids.

In 2022 the Crawford County Library System removed LGBT-themed children’s books from the children’s section of the library at the request of the quorum court and placed the books in a separate area of the library.

To be clear, the library did not remove the LGBT books from circulation. It gave the books their own shelf space away from other children’s books.

However, three individuals sued Crawford County in federal court. On Monday U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes, III ruled against Crawford County — meaning the books must be put back in the children’s section.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated incident. The Jonesboro public library has been at the center of multiple controversies over its decision to place books with sexually-explicit images in its children’s section and for failing to adopt a policy that separates sexual material from children’s books.

The library in Jonesboro even went so far as to post on Facebook that it isn’t the library’s responsibility to protect kids from obscenity.

Other public libraries in Arkansas have failed to separate pro-LGBT books and sexual material from children’s material as well.

Families should be able to take their children to the library without worrying what their children might see, and taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize pro-LGBT library books or graphic novels that depict explicit images of children.

We trust our federal courts ultimately will agree and let local communities like Crawford County protect children from inappropriate material in public libraries.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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Lowe’s Revises DEI Policies Amid Growing Public Pushback

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Yahoo News reports home-improvement giant Lowe’s — one of America’s largest retail chains — has revised its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies amidst growing public pushback.

Lowe’s is the latest major corporation to rethink its support for pro-LGBT initiatives such as DEI policies.

In July, John Deere — the world’s largest seller of farm equipment — announced it was moving away from pro-LGBT and pro-DEI activity.

Bud Light is still suffering the repercussions of its LGBT marketing disaster last year, and Target chose to quietly reduce its Pride-themed merchandise last June following backlash from its customers.

It’s deeply troubling when multimillion dollar corporations use their wealth and influence to promote radical, pro-LGBT ideas, but it’s also encouraging when companies like Lowe’s rethink their positions and change course.

As some have said, all of this seems to show America’s “silent majority” is very real when it comes to these issues.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

Photo Credit: Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

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John Deere Backs Away from DEI, Pro-LGBT Activity

LGBT,

The world’s largest seller of farm equipment appears to be moving away from pro-LGBT and pro-DEI activity.

In a statement published on X earlier this month, John Deere said the company would no longer participate in “social or cultural awareness parades, festivals, or events.” This seems to be directed at pro-LGBT Pride parades and similar performances.

The statement also said the company will keep “socially motivated” messages out of company training materials and policies, and it reaffirmed that “diversity quotas and pronoun identification” are not part of the John Deere’s policies. This seems to take aim at corporate DEI initiatives and training.

This comes as corporations around the country face pushback for their pro-LGBT activism.

As we recently wrote, Bud Light is still suffering the repercussions of its LGBT marketing disaster last year, and Target chose to quietly reduce its Pride-themed merchandise this year following backlash from its customers.

As John Stonestreet often points out, “Ideas have consequences, and bad ideas have victims.” That’s why it’s so deeply troubling when multimillion dollar corporations use their wealth and influence to promote radical, pro-LGBT ideas. Those bad ideas leave victims in their wake.

But it’s also encouraging when customers choose not to support those bad ideas — and it’s encouraging when companies like John Deere choose not to follow the examples of other major corporations.

As some of have said, all of this seems to show the “silent majority” is real when it comes to the transgender issue.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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