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Cork library staff being abused and intimidated over LGBT+ books

This sinks to a whole new low

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster/arid-41092459.html

A number of library staff have been subjected to verbal abuse and “paedophile slurs” by people who have entered the building in recent weeks to object to the display of LGBT+ reading material.

In one incident in recent days, an individual grabbed a copy of Juno Dawson’s book, This Book is Gay, and ripped it up.

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Absolutely disgusting and totally unacceptable behavior. And illegal too I would wager - certainly the destruction of library property.

There is no doubt that intolerance and homophobia is on the rise here, Minister Roderick O’Gorman is getting daily homophobic abuse and being called a paedophile and child groomer on social media.

Something is emboldening the homophobes to spew their hatred more openly and that needs to be looked at and addressed.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058288200/cork-library-staff-being-abused-and-intimidated-over-lgbt-books

Its happening all over the country. Librarians are being harassed regularly.

https://m.independent.ie/regionals/dublin/dublin-news/juno-dawson-books-will-not-be-removed-from-dublin-libraries-after-complaints-about-sexualised-content-42323296.html

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120359011#Comment_120359011

Yep

A lot of these people are far right activists who are also involved in racist and refugee hate protests.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120359093#Comment_120359093

Saw that happening the other day at my local library.

Two women made a formal complaint about the display of lgbt themed books and a rainbow flag.

Somebody think of the children and my auld mother kind of attitude.

What is the book about? Where was it displayed? (for context)

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120368728#Comment_120368728

Its a book about being lesbian, gay, bi, trans and is in the Young Adult section.

What about live and let live? Disgusting to try impose your backward views on other people.

https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/education/2023/04/03/libraries-at-centre-of-culture-wars-as-protesters-try-to-remove-lgtbq-books-for-young-people/

Harassment is ongoing

Juno Dawson's young adult non-fiction book This Book is Gay has been removed by Children's Books Ireland from their Pride Reading Guide.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41110669.html

According to the article linked in the above post this was one of the books in the library.

Here's some pages from the book;

https://twitter.com/Angievonder/status/1643899021197492224

The part I would actually find most objectionable is the section headed "Biological differences between gay and straight". What utter nonsense to be brainwashing kids with.

Gobshites protested GPO yesterday

https://gcn.ie/anti-lgbtq-protests-dublin/

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120454423#Comment_120454423

Certainly shouldn't be in the non-fiction section.

Where are the Gardai?

https://www.corkbeo.ie/news/local-news/cork-city-library-workers-fed-27253425

Absolutely disgusting ongoing intimidation in Cork. Shameful.

Anyone in Cork please support

https://twitter.com/ForsaCork/status/1676614963509571585?t=knjEvGTGN1oGfs1a-lEugA&s=19

https://jrnl.ie/6124389

https://www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/arid-41185477.html

Good articles on these disgusting attacks.

Intimidating staff like this seems repensible. But on the specific point of Juno Dawson’s book, some groups like Children’s Books Ireland have reversed their position on it.

Do you think it’s suitable for children , and if not why was it on children’s reading lists from junior infants upwards, and why is it in the children LGBTQ+ display in these libraries?

Perhaps a little more attention to detail here would help separate the extremists from people asking legitimate questions about what’s suitable material for children?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120887590#Comment_120887590

Young adults is not children.

Children's Books Ireland were harassed too by the way.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888088#Comment_120888088

I’m not a subject matter on this controversy, but everything I’ve read up to this point has said that it’s “a young adult book”, but it was in lists which included “children”. E.g. 0-18

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41110669.html

”a must-have for all school libraries”

https://www.anpost.com/AnPost/media/PDFs/CBI-Book-List-Rainbow-Reads-An-Post-FINAL-(1).pdf

Looking at more articles, it looks like the Irish libraries had placed it in the “12-14 sections”. And they are not backing down.

https://m.independent.ie/regionals/dublin/dublin-news/juno-dawson-books-will-not-be-removed-from-dublin-libraries-after-complaints-about-sexualised-content/42323296.html

I know there’s more to the book than sex advice (although the excerpts online are mostly sex and sexuality advice) but this does seem a bit young for advice on sexting, hand jobs, blow jobs, anal, sex toys, and so forth.

with the caveat of them being aimed at age 18+ , it seems very pro hookup apps like Grindr as a way to meet people, tips on how the create the most attractive online dating profile. The main benefits being meeting lots people quickly, etc. I think IMHO that’s risky behaviour for 12 to 14 years olds - you don’t need to have kids to know about online safety and so on.

The bit about the 16 year old having an affair with a married man, going back to his place and so on, was… eye opening. While ages of consent can be vary between jurisdictions and people can mature at different ages etc, I think IMHO they are necessary to protect younger people from exploitation. And, from a purely legal point of view, in Ireland 16 is below the age of consent. So more food for thought.

maybe the libraries should just admit they made a mistake, say sorry, and move it to an older section. This would take most of the wind out of the protests, and I think most reasonable people would agree with this.

Or is there something else I’m missing here?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888623#Comment_120888623

12-14 year olds cannot take these books out without parental consent.

Why exactly should teenagers not be learning from well researched books?

Why are there calls to censor these books but not loads of other books?

Why on earth wouldn't you want to promote online safety to teenagers?

None of the protests and calls to censor are reasonable when they are based on anti education and anti lgbt agendas

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888623#Comment_120888623

Stop this intimidating behaviour bullying people in their workplace first.

Then let a discussion take place.

Cork Library had to close again today because of obstruction. Disgusting and disgraceful.

Are only certain people allowed to protest? (ie the people who agree with your views)

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120914669#Comment_120914669

Harassment, threats, intimidation, damage to books, shoving people, homophobic and transphobic hatred isnt protest. Constant calling people groomers, child abusers, prostitutes, paedophiles isnt protest. Deliberately causing obstruction in order to close public services isnt protest.

https://m.sundayworld.com/news/irish-news/cork-library-closed-due-to-the-actions-of-far-right-protesting-books/a882568199.html

Fair play to Dan Boyle calling it out

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120916815#Comment_120916815

Do you have a link to the video evidence?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120917200#Comment_120917200

This has been going on for many many months. Its easy enough to find all the links yourself.

Amazing that not one video has been posted here. It's easy to make accusations. It'd be even easier to end any doubt by just posting the evidence

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120368728#Comment_120368728

It doesn't matter. We don't have censorship and we trust librarians to do their job.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120917236#Comment_120917236

You must be unable to do a Google search. Or if you are trying to pretend that the library wasn't closed, that books were not torn up, that staff have not been harassed and intimated maybe try the conspiracy theories forum.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120917249#Comment_120917249

People exaggerate stuff all the time. So yes, in this day and age, in a public building with cameras, when everyone has their own camera, surely there is a video going around of these monsters who have been there multiple times now.