Is it legal for a local government to pull same-sex parenting books from a library? And is it appropriate to withhold funding between tiers of government if they disagree with a decision?
These are two questions that have arisen after a local council in Sydney voted to remove a same-sex parenting book from a suburban library service.
At its ordinary meeting this month, the Cumberland City Council voted to ban “Same-Sex Parents” by Holly Duhig aimed at 5-to-7 year old children.
The motion put forward by mayor-turned-councillor, Steve Christou, was passed by six councillors, and opposed by four.
The book features two men and a child on the cover.
“Local residents are complaining, so as an elected representative, it’s our job to represent the views of our local community,” he said.
“As I stated, we have a very different cultural mix out at Cumberland, as you would know, and we have people that have deep family values, and they’re very concerned.
Blowback from Labor MPs
The decision led to NSW Arts Minister John Graham threatened to pull funding from Cumberland’s libraries over the decision.“It is up to readers to choose which book to take off the shelf,” he said, in comments obtained by AAP. “We are examining the consequences this decision may have for the council continuing to receive library funding from the NSW government.”
“Stop being weirdly obsessed with how other people live their private lives and thinking you look tough punching down on minorities. It’s pathetic,” she said.
“I think one Labor councillor did vote for it and I’m condemning them,” she added, in reference to fellow Labor member and Councillor Mohamad Hussein, who voted in favour of the ban.
Federal Labor Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek, who presides over the very progressive electorate covering Sydney CBD, was also critical.
Where Does the Law Stand?
Can a book be removed if it’s by public demand, and can a government say “no” to funding a lower tier of government, even if the community is impacted?Jacob Deem, associate professor at the Faculty of Law at Queensland’s Bond University, explained the intricacies.
While it could be argued that banning books featuring same-sex couples could count as vilification, according to the law there are exemptions.
“The NSW Anti-Discrimination Act makes it unlawful to ‘vilify’ a person because of their homosexuality,” Mr. Deem told The Epoch Times. “However, even if it were found that the ban did vilify same-sex couples, the Act provides an exemption for public interest debate and discussion.
“Tribunals in other jurisdictions considering similar anti-vilification laws have found the exemption applies to public discussion on a political figure’s views, even when those views are unreasonable, unsupported, one-sided or even plainly wrong.'”
On the funding issue, Mr. Deem said the government does hold the power of allocating funding.
“Whether the minister can reduce or cut funding, and whether he should do so, are separate questions,” the associate professor said.
“Local council libraries are guaranteed a core subsidy under the Library Act, but the minister has significant discretion about funding decisions.
“Libraries provide vital public functions and a decision to cut library funding would have a concerning impact on residents of Cumberland City Council.”
Councillors in Favour and Against the Decision
The decision passed with a small majority, while some councillors were not present for the vote.Councillors in favour: Steve Christou, Greg Cummings, Paul Garrard, Helen Hughes, Mohamad Hussein, and Michael Zaiter.
Councillors against: Diane Colman, Glenn Elmore, Kun Huang, Lisa Lake, and Suman Saha.
