The mayor of Ridgeland, Mississippi, Gene McGee, is currently withholding over $110,000 from the local library system, insisting that they must remove their LGBTQ content if the libraries wish to remain funded.
According to the Mississippi Free Press, during an interview with Library Director, Tonja Johnson, she said the mayor “explained his opposition to what he called ‘homosexual materials’ in the library, that it went against his Christian beliefs, and that he would not release the money as the long as the materials were there.”
When speaking to CBS 12, the mayor said he wasn’t withholding money due to LGBTQ content, but due to “sexual connotation”. When speaking to CBS the mayor said, “I have had many complaints from citizens about the display of certain books at the Library. In my capacity as mayor, I simply believe the books are inappropriate for children. There is a minimum, sexual connotations are not appropriate for children when they enter the library.”
However, as People noted, he gave a much different explanation to Tonja Johnson. Johnson said that the mayor told her that he wouldn’t allow LGBTQ content in libraries based on his Christian beliefs. According to the publication she said, “He told me that the library can serve whoever we wanted, but that he only serves the great Lord above.”
It’s clear that mayor McGee is clearly breaking the law and isn’t separating church and state the way the constitution demands. It’s also likely that he realized that, which is why he changed his narrative from it being about his Christian faith to it being about content “not suitable for children”.
This begs the question: if it’s really about sexual content and not LGBTQ content, then why didn’t he withhold library funding when 50 Shades of Grey came out? Why does he allow the libraries to carry movies rated PG-13 and R? By definition, those movies aren’t suitable for children, hence their ratings. And why is sexual content so important to him, but violence isn’t? I’m sure the library has true crime books about killers and novels about war.
His argument makes no sense and is clearly a lie to cover up the fact that he wants LGBTQ content banned from libraries.
To make your voice heard, you can contact the mayor’s office here.
