Porn Or Library Book? Looks Can Be Deceiving.

Porn Or Library Book? Looks Can Be Deceiving.

By Joseph Yang |

Earlier this year on July 20th, a small group of moms and residents gathered together for the first time at the Chandler City Council meeting. They simply wanted to share their thoughts on some of the books in the Chandler Public Library system that they found while at the library with their kids.

One of the books brought by Chandler Unified School District candidate Carley Morgan was It’s Perfectly Normal, a picture book labeled “Juvenile”—meaning for kids. The book contains images of nude men, women, and children. It also explains in detail how sex happens including talking about “When the penis enters the vagina, the wall to the vagina stretches open and around the penis.” Carley’s son Riley, a 13-year-old also spoke about how no one wants to have these “awkward” conversations with their children before they are ready to. Parenting should always be in the hands of the parents and not the library.

Andrew Adams, the Chair of Republican Legislative District 14, also spoke saying his 1-year-old daughter was with him and if someone showed his daughter the images in these books, they would be dealing with him “personally.”

On the night of September 19, 2023, many concerned citizens, parents, and residents gathered together again to express their dismay for the books that were found in the juvenile section of the libraries.

Some of the same citizens at the previous council meeting came out yet again—this time to speak to a seven-person board appointed by the Mayor and Council called the Library Board. The President of the Board, Beth Brizel, a former City Council candidate, said “I have taken notes and will definitely discuss with library staff on the possibility of this.”

The citizens who spoke were loud and clear while talking to this board. The first speaker Aubrey Savela, who is with Turning Point Action, read from the book What’s Going on Down There? On page 116 of that book, what is especially concerning is a question that is prompted by a young man, “If I get my girlfriend pregnant can I make her get an abortion even if she doesn’t want to?” Should public libraries really be used to promote getting an abortion in such a way to innocent and unsuspecting minors?

Another speaker, Jenine Cortes, who is a mother of four and is also running to serve the Chandler Unified School District board, told the board that she used to “live in the library” with her kids when her oldest child was younger. But now, she fears bringing her children to the library because they might go to the wrong shelf and find pornographic materials.

These books not only contain graphic words, but they also include graphic illustrations: pictures of women bending over to see themselves in the mirror, a penis entering the anus, and many other graphic images that have no place in the juvenile section of a public library!

Carley and Andrew also discussed how they both sat down with the Library Manager named Rachele. They shared that they asked Rachele what kind of content filters there are on the library’s computers in the youth section. According to Carley and Andrew, Rachele replied that “there are none” because the library does not want to “restrict access of their patrons.” But this is highly concerning, especially given the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case United States v. American Library Association, which stated that libraries that implement software for content filtration is NOT a violation of the Constitution.

To wrap up the night, the Library Board watched footage of the City Council meeting which drove the parents’ points home again! Now, the board needs to make the right decision before its next meeting in November to ensure that kids don’t get unfettered access to pornography in public libraries.

Joseph Yang is a young community leader and grassroots activist. He currently runs a community organization and serves on the Chandler Police Review Panel. Joseph is the Founder of the East Valley Young Republicans and current assistant state advisor for the TeenAge Republicans. He hosts a show called “The Conservative Seoul Show” that you can find here.

Maricopa County Tells Residents ‘Educate Yourself’ on LGBTQ+ Ideology

Maricopa County Tells Residents ‘Educate Yourself’ on LGBTQ+ Ideology

By Corinne Murdock |

On Sunday, Maricopa County used its official social media accounts to tell residents to educate themselves about the LGBTQ+ history. The post comes midway through what some of the country recognizes to be Pride Month, acknowledgment and celebration of LGBTQ+ lifestyles.

The county directed residents to utilize resources from the Maricopa County Library District (MCLD). The district organized adult, teen, juvenile, and children reading lists as well as film and TV suggestions for Pride Month. 

For those under 10 years old, the picture books were “Strong” by Eric Rosswood, about the world’s only openly-gay powerlifter; “The Rainbow Parade” by Emily Neilson, about a lesbian couple who help their little girl work past her nerves to attend her first Pride parade; “Twas the Night Before Pride” by Joanna McClintick, about families preparing for a Pride parade; “My Moms Love Me” by Anna Membrino, and “Plenty of Hugs” by Fran Manushkin, about children raised by lesbian couples; “What Are Your Words” by Katherine Locke, about gender identity pronouns; “Two Grooms on a Cake” by Rob Sanders, about the first wedding between two gay men before it was legalized; “Sam is My Sister” by Ashley Rhodes-Courter, about a family encouraging their gender-confused little boy to become a transgender girl; “Daddy & Dada” by Ryan Brockington, about a little girl raised by two gay men; “It Feels Good to Be Yourself” by Theresa Thorn, about gender identity and transgenderism; “Kind Like Marsha” by Sarah Prager, about historic LGBTQ+ individuals; and “Cinderelliot” by Mark Ceilley, a retelling of Cinderella but with two gay men. 

Most reactions to the post were negative. Residents asked why the county was advocating for certain ideologies over others.

“I don’t think government-run institutions should be telling citizens what they should ‘accept and affirm,’ much less celebrate,” replied one Twitter user. 

“I wonder, you push ‘Pride Month,’ do you present ‘heterosexual’ lifestyles by offering book readings from the Bible?” replied one Facebook user. “And, in the same book, you can find our creator’s thoughts on LGBTQ+ — since LGBTQ+ isn’t new, it has been around since the earliest times of history (refer to Genesis 19).”

Other residents lamented that the county was focused on social justice agendas instead of issues plaguing the city like the homelessness and violent crime surges.

“This is why Maricopa County must be broken up. Get busy and stop crime. Help with the homeless problem,” replied another Twitter user. 

Pride Month originated from the Stonewall Riots, or Stonewall Uprising, in June 1969. The six days of riots were in response to a police raid on a gay bar in Manhattan, New York. At that time, homosexual relations were illegal. A year later, LGBTQ+ activists commemorated the riots with gay pride marches in Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. 

Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.