Janet Pritchett on Porn for Kids
We must not allow her to continue on the HSE School Board
Last week, Janet Pritchett denied that she spoke in favor of pornography in the library:
This is false, or at the very least extremely misleading. Over the last year or so, we have been in a dispute with the Hamilton East Public Library about what materials are appropriate for minors. Ms. Pritchett spoke at one of the board meetings (see her complete remarks here), and she said this:
I am writing regarding the requests to remove/relocate two books being considered tomorrow—Let’s Talk About It and A Quick and Easy Guide to Consent … if these two books are removed, this will be the beginning of a targeted campaign to remove more books … Our librarians have made the correct decisions with regard to these books and the review process to decide to keep them in place was reasonable and fair.
At the time that Ms. Pritchett made this statement, the book Let’s Talk About It was shelved in the section of the Hamilton East Public Library that is meant for kids as young as 11 years old. Ms. Pritchett wanted to keep the book in that section.
So is this book pornographic? Yes it is, and obviously so. I do not post pornography on my blog, but if you would like to see the book yourself, you can view its most objectionable images here (scroll to the bottom of the pdf file). For example, the images in the book include an explicit drawing of two pornographic actors—they are identified as such by the book—engaged in a sexual performance. In the image in question, one of the porn actors is sitting on the other one’s face. So the book obviously contains pornographic images, as you can see for yourself, and Ms. Pritchett advocated keeping it in the kids’ section. This is what I mean when I say that she supports porn for kids. This point is so obvious that I conclude that Ms. Pritchett is just being dishonest in denying it.
I should add that the fact that this book is pornographic is not even the worst thing about it. The book also tells children to talk to strangers online about sexual kink, contrary to FBI advice. For this reason, the library’s own lawyer deemed the book “objectively harmful to children.” But I guess Ms. Pritchett takes herself to know better than the FBI and the HEPL lawyer.
Moreover, the other book Ms. Pritchett supported for eleven-year-old children—A Quick & Easy Guide to Consent—asks children to reflect on whether they might like to engage in or fantasize about such activities as:
sending nude pictures of themselves to others (a felony for minors in Indiana!)
group sex
vibrating butt-plugs
strap-ons
bondage, floggers, whips, or blindfolds
anal sex
Again, this is obviously not appropriate for an eleven-year-old. So even if we set aside disputes about the word ‘pornography’, there is still a serious problem. Ms. Pritchett thinks the content I’ve described—by whatever name—is appropriate for eleven-year-olds. That is a ridiculous position. And while it is true that the library board was eventually pressured into moving these books, Ms. Pritchett’s public position on these issues never changed. Ms. Pritchett is therefore not competent to continue on the school board, where she is charged with making policy that affects children. She does not have the good judgment required for the job.
Let’s vote her out. For those in district 2, vote for Juanita Albright, her opponent. If you’re in another district, vote for Tiffany Pascoe (district 1), Dawn Lang (district 3), or Ben Orr (district 4). (More information on these candidates here.) Encourage everyone you know to do likewise. Early voting at Holland Park starts this week.