Parents’ groups paralyzed libraries until they removed sex education books

Children reading in a library. Getty Images

Conservative parents’ organizations stirred controversy for filing complaints demanding public libraries in Chungcheongnam-do to remove children’s books on sex education and gender equality. Due to their persistent complaints, some libraries removed the books from their shelves.

Chungcheongnam-do libraries began receiving a flood of requests to remove the “problematic books” from the library through complaints delivered in person and over the phone in May.

The Kyunghyang Shinmun obtained a notice that the civic group, Ggumkium (dream-rearing) Growth Institute, sent to the libraries in Chungcheongnam-do, and it states, “Sexual revolution terms that remain in the curriculum. In other words, books that do not oppose or that justify homosexuality, sex change, premature sexualization, and abortion on grounds of diversity, socio-cultural gender, and gender sensitivity should rightfully be discarded. Nevertheless, they are still displayed in the library.” The notice went on to state, “Review the books in question and remove them according to regulations.”

In addition to children’s books on sex education, gender and feminism, the list of 120 ”problematic books,” which the group and some parents’ organizations asked the libraries to remove, included 23 books that the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family designated as Nadaum (becoming me) children’s books in 2019-2020, such as Ruth Objects: The Life of Ruth Bader Ginsberg (Hamggejaram, Kyohak Publishing), a female justice in the U.S. Supreme Court, and Old Lady Flower (Ggothalmeoni), a picture book published by Sakyejul based on the statements of elderly comfort women in the Japanese military. Books that the government selected to help children discover what it is to become themselves (nadaum) by escaping gender stereotypes and prejudice and respecting diversity had become something that had to be ousted from libraries.

The librarians complained that the libraries were practically paralyzed from functioning due to the constant protests and petitions filed by the parents’ organizations. They often had to pull the telephone plug out because of calls telling them to “get rid of that book from the library.”

On July 25, a librarian who had worked for twenty years in one library in Chungcheongnam-do, said, “I pondered the responsibilities of a public library and didn’t want to remove the books, but they called five days a week and filed complaints in person. I just couldn’t stand it.” She confessed, “Eventually, we pulled about twenty books on sexual minorities off our shelves, but it was so humiliating.” A representative of another library said, “In addition to the complaints filed directly, we also received requests through the members of the provincial council.”

Local politicians also supported the issue stubbornly raised by the parents’ groups. Chungcheongnam-do Governor Kim Tae-heum attended an emergency questioning on provincial affairs in the Chungcheongnam-do Provincial Council Wednesday and announced, “We restricted access to seven books in the 36 libraries in our province.” While representatives of Ggumkium and other conservative organizations observed the plenary session, Councilman Ji Min-gyu (PPP) raised a copy of The Red Book for Teens (Redian) and said, “Hundreds of books on sex education placed in school and public libraries describe ways to have sex and use sexual expressions.” He called for action claiming that the books could sexually provoke children excessively.

Governor Kim also mentioned seven books that the gender ministry had designated as Nadaum books in 2020, but later removed from the list after conservatives argued that the books encouraged premature sexualization. When the gender ministry removed the seven books from the Nadaum list following protests from conservative and religious organizations, it was criticized for having “outdated ideas” and for being “regressive.”

The publishing industry raised voices of concern that the latest incident was virtually book censorship. Yun Eun-ju, the writer of Girl and Boy: How to Become a Wonderful Person (Sakyejul), which was included in the list of “problematic books,” said, “I wrote the book wishing that the children could grow up without any stereotypes of gender roles.” She added, “I don’t understand how they can think that they can control books on common knowledge with violent means.”