'This book is trash': GCLS Board of Trustees relocate all trans youth books to PEC section

Greenville County libraries’ Board of Trustees unanimously voted Monday to relocate children's materials depicting transgender minors from the children’s section to the parenting section – where only adults or minors with library cards allowing them to check out books from any section, can access them.

It's unclear how many books will be relocated, but board member Marcia Moston said she located "about 20 books." The Greenville News requested which books will be relocated and did not receive an immediate response.

The board concluded to remove all materials by adopting an amendment to the collections policy “targeting audiences aged 0-12, in which the illustrations, themes or storylines affirm, portray, or discuss changing the appearance of a minor's gender in ways inconsistent with the minor’s biological sex” to the Parenting and Early childhood collection (PEC.)

This includes social transitioning, meaning “pronouns or dress inconsistent with biological sex,” along with medical transitioning, including puberty blockers or hormone replacement therapies.

Not every GCLS library houses a PEC section, however. Books in the children’s section depicting trans minors will be relocated from libraries without a PEC section to those with a section.

Board member James Hoard says 'This book is trash'

The recommendation for the relocation of "Melissa" and other books about trans youth came from the Library Materials Committee and more specifically, board member and chair of the materials board Marcia Moston, who spearheaded the efforts to add the amendment to the existing policy.

After “Melissa” by Alex Gino, a book following a transgender 10-year-old girl, was requested to be removed from the library system, the library decided to keep the book in its collection. The person who made the request appealed this decision, prompting the materials board to discuss the book, which inspired the library’s new amendment to the collections policy.

During the committee meeting on Feb. 16, board members discussed the fate of “Melissa," previously published as "George." Author of the book Alex Gino, who uses gender-neutral pronouns, says they made a "mistake" when first naming the book, which is why it was eventually re-published as "Melissa."

"I used a name for my main character that she doesn’t like for herself instead of her actual name," Gino says on their website.

Board member Elizabeth Collins attempted to make a motion to remove all copies of the book, including digital and audio, from the library's collection, which failed. The committee opted to move the book to the PEC section.

“I don't believe there's a parent here today who wants their taxes funding books that teaches kids that undermining parents is a safer alternative than talking to them,” Collins said.

Board member Brian Aufmuth, who is not a member of the committee but is a member of the library board, noted concerns that they would be “censoring materials based on religious perspective.”

During the discussion about the new amendment to the policy during the committee meeting, Aufmuth expressed concerns that “the library staff would have a very difficult job interpreting and enforcing the policy when the umbrella is too big.”

The same conversation returned during the board meeting on Monday, with board member Joe Poore expressing similar concerns to Aufmuth. After an hour of discussion, the board decided to add language to make the language more specific to ensure books that depicted "tomboy" characters would not be relocated. The language added that only books “affirming pronouns or dressing inconsistent with biological sex” would be relocated to the PEC section.

But board member James Hoard attempted to remove “Melissa” altogether during the full board's meeting.

“We are taxpayer-funded. It’s not the taxpayer’s duty to subsidize trash,” Hoard said.

Collins voted “yes,” along with chairman Allan Hill, but the motion failed.

“The book itself has no place in a tax-funded institution. One of the main themes is the idea that parents are not safe and parents should not be a part of these very important life decisions,” Collins said.

Book previously removed from Greenville Elementary libraries

Book challenges are not only happening in Greenville but across the nation. Libraries are discussing what materials can be allowed inside public and school libraries. In general, book challenges in the U.S. are rising.

Last September, the American Library Association (ALA) reported the number of book challenges increased by 20% within the same reporting period in 2022, which was the year that held the highest number of book challenges since the ALA began tracking the data.

The association also reported, "most of the challenged books were written by or about a person of color or a member of the LGBTQIA+ community."

It’s not the first time “Melissa” has been removed in Greenville County. In 2022, the book was voted to be removed from elementary school libraries by the Greenville County School Board, as previously reported by Greenville News. The book was voted to be removed because it was “too mature to be appropriate for K-5 students,” according to school board member Sarah Dulin.

From 2018 to 2020, “Melissa”, once published as “George,” has been the number one challenged book in the U.S., meaning a book that has received a documented request to remove the material from a school or library, according to the Office for Intellectual Freedom.

The debate also reignites a longstanding debate between library board members' LGBTQ materials in the library. Last October, the board voted 6 to 4 to remove themed displays from all facilities, unless they were concerned with “paid holidays observed by both Greenville County government and Greenville County Library System" to avoid book displays celebrating Pride month in the libraries.

In 2022, Chairman Hill ordered the removal of all pride displays in GCLS facilities. The decision was made without full board approval and was later reversed the next day.

Debate between library board members mirrors debate among SC lawmakers

It is also not the first time South Carolina, as a state, has debated trans minors, as the decision from the board comes at a pivotal time not just for the library, but for South Carolina lawmakers.

In January, the South Carolina House passed a bill, deemed the "Help not Harm" bill restricting medical care for transgender youth — including anyone under age 18 from receiving gender reassignment surgery, any form of puberty-blocking, or procedures in South Carolina. The Senate has not passed it yet, but if it does, it outlaws the use of puberty-blocking drugs, gender reassignment surgery, and hormone therapy for transgender people under the age of 18 in South Carolina, and makes it a felony for doctors who perform gender assignment surgery on those under the age of 18.

'I have a lot of questions concerning my library'

After the board finished the business listed on the agenda, public comment was allowed. Some spoke in favor of the board’s decision, and others voiced their concerns.

“I have a lot of questions concerning my library, who recommended some of the books, and who oversees the purchase of these books.” said Claire Walsh, a resident of Travelers Rest, who mentioned moving to Greenville County to “raise her children in the Bible Belt.”

“I am a taxpayer and want my child to feel safe in the library,” she said.

Melissa Nichols, a lawyer, told the board she had concerns about “the steps this board is taking.” She said the policy passed by the board is “blatantly illegal.”

"It will be purely the viewpoint discrimination that is unconstitutional and would likely lead to a costly lawsuit that would waste taxpayer money," Nichols said, citing the City of Wichita Falls case, which occurred in Texas in 1999.

In Sund. V. City of Wichita Falls, the city council passed a resolution allowing books like “Heather Has Two Mommies” and “Daddy’s Roommate,” both books for children that are about LGBTQ+ people, to be moved to the adult section. It was challenged in a lawsuit, where it was ruled that the resolution was unconstitutional.

Though those in favor of the new amendment argue the books are not being banned, just relocated, others say the relocation of books to make it more difficult to access can be a form of “soft censorship,” according to the ACLU.

“They (the library board) showed they fundamentally do not understand the library system they have been tasked with governing,” a representative of the Freedom in Libraries Advocacy Group said in a statement. “Greenville families and taxpayers should have open access to materials that represent all types of families, regardless of the Board of Trustees’ personal and religious convictions.”

Savannah Moss covers Greenville County politics and growth/development. Reach her at smoss@gannett.com or follow her on X @Savmoss.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: GCLS Board relocating transgender youth book called 'blatantly illegal'