A council could be set to condemn Staffordshire County Council over the controversial decision to remove LGBTQ+ materials from libraries. A motion which is set to be presented to Lichfield District Council next week will warn the decision risks fostering prejudice and restricting freedom of expression.
Last month during Pride month the Reform UK-led county council announced it would no longer feature LGBTQ+ displays. Instead the council said that libraries should focus on the core offer of reading, learning and connecting residents to wider council services.
A harmful message
The move was met with criticism from Staffordshire MPs and campaigners. In a joint letter the MPs called for the decision to be reversed, saying the decision sends a ‘clear and harmful message’.
Liberal Democrat Councillor Hugh Ashton has submitted a motion to Lichfield District Council that is set to be debated next week. It would see the council formally ‘deplore’ the county council’s actions, arguing the decision sets ‘a dangerous precedent’.
The motion states: “This Council deplores the actions of the Reform UK-led Staffordshire County Council in banning displays relating to and materials promoting Pride month in SCC-owned and managed facilities, including public libraries, and condemns the way that this has been promulgated without an official decision apparently having been taken by County Cabinet or Council. It views this as setting a dangerous precedent that restricts freedom of expression, and which can foster prejudice against the LGBTQ+ community and other minority groups.”
Lichfield Council supports the LGBTQ+ community
The motion also states that the council wishes to place on record its support for the LGBTQ+ community and other groups it says have been discriminated against by the ruling, while reaffirming its commitment to promoting ‘a cohesive and inclusive community’.
Staffordshire County Council claimed the move was prompted by the adoption of a new libraries strategy. Councillor Hayley Coles, the council’s deputy leader, instructed officers to examine how promotions and activities are delivered and how library spaces are used to best serve the community.
Council Leader Martin Murrary said that no books had been removed from libraries and that the review covered all promotional activities in libraries, not just Pride. He added that the approach is intended to ensure libraries remain welcoming and useful for everyone in Staffordshire.
Councillor Murray spoke out
He said: “The politicisation of this issue by campaigners, commentators and, regrettably, some elected colleagues is what is causing division across our community. Our administration is committed to treating everyone, no matter their ‘group identity’, as equal individuals before the law.
“A decision to review and begin working towards updating the council’s ability to meet this standard has been recast as ‘harmful’. Formal equality is the fundamental principle of our great British tradition. That is not ‘harmful’
“Individuals, charities, businesses and community organisers remain entirely free to organise and promote any lawful cause they choose in their own name and with their own resources. We fully support this right and are not seeking to prevent it from being exercised.
“But we do not believe that public resources should automatically be used to do so. That is why we have decided to launch this review and take this action.”
Councillors at Lichfield District Council are set to debate the motion at the next council meeting on Tuesday 14 July.
An article by Local Democracy Reporter Jonathan Sutton.
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