ANTRIM COUNTY, Mich., (WPBN/WGTU) — The Bellaire Public Library board held a crowded public hearing Friday morning as they heard a request to remove a book with LGBTQ themes from its shelves.
The book in question is volume five of “Heartstopper.”
It’s a graphic novel about two teenage boys who meet and fall in love.
Those who submitted the request claimed they didn’t mean to advocate banning the book, but instead want all sexually explicit material made inaccessible to children.
“I think that homosexual relationships between teenage boys is not the norm in our culture. I’d ask you, would you put in the library a similar graphic novel about a boy and a girl who are engaged in a sexual relationship presented as a positive thing and a norm?” Antrim County Resident Lee Whipple said. “I think most parents wouldn’t want that.”
“It is commonly understood that the young adult genre features allusions, innuendos, references to or discussions of intimacy and relationships without having graphic depiction,” Antrim County Resident Ivy said. “This is realistic because the young adult range, often considered to be mid-late teens to early and mid-twenties, is the time when someone begins to engage with relationships and other aspects of life that the Heartstopper series tackles, such a bullying, mental health struggles and discovering oneself.”
Board President Mary Edens said a smaller committee will discuss the specific request.
The board will likely decide the book’s fate in December.
