Republican Wants To Expand Definition Of Child Pornography Making It Easier To Ban LGBTQ+ Books
January 15, 2023A lawmaker from Wyoming has begun efforts to remove LGBTQ+ books from both school and public libraries across the state.
Republican Representative-elect Jeanette Ward has introduced House Bill 87, expanding the definition of “child pornography” to “any visual depiction, including any photograph, film, video, picture, cartoon, drawing, computer or computer generated image or picture, whether or not made or produced by electronic, mechanical or other means, or any other form of depiction of explicit sexual conduct.”
According to LGBTQ Nation, the bill also repeals a law that gives exemptions for those who “possess or disseminate obscene material” for activities related to schools, universities, colleges, museums, and public libraries.
Based on this definition, many books that provide sexual health information to young people would be banned, as would several books that help LGBTQ+ people learn about their identities.
Image Credit: Pixabay
“Not requiring tax payers to pay for obscenity is reasonable and just,” Ward told the Casper Star Tribune. “These books will continue to be available in the marketplace, but not paid for by taxpayer dollars. Reasonable people everywhere recognize these books as obscene and reasonable people do not want their money used to subsidize obscenity.”
Ward’s bill in Wyoming currently has 13 Republic cosponsors. If it passes, it will go into effect on July 1st.
Ward also worked with members of Moms for Liberty, an anti-LGBTQ+ group, to get them elected to the Natrona County school board. Moms for Liberty members have been running for school board positions across the country as part of the right-wing effort to shift schools toward a more conservative ideology.
On boards where Moms for Liberty is in control, curricula is likely to exclude LGBTQ+-inclusive and anti-racist education.
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