Michigan’s Dearborn Public Schools has temporarily removed seven books from its shelves in response to parental backlash about the content to which their children have access.
The district also restricted access to an e-book application that holds thousands of titles.
Many of the books with which parents take issue depict explicit sexual interactions, often between or among children.
One book, Flamer by Mike Curato, included graphic descriptions of sexual acts between young boys.
“You know when you put something into a kid’s mind, it makes them want to do it more or try it,” parent Stephanie Butler, whose daughter checked out the title from the library at Edsel Ford High School, said, according to ABC 7 Detroit.
Butler, however, said she is fine with “LGBT romance novels,” which are “completely appropriate,” but takes issue with “teaching them how to actually do the act.”
Another book available to children, This Book Is Gay by Juno Dawson, promotes extreme promiscuity and casual hookup culture, while speaking directly about sodomy and “massaging” the prostate.
“We all want to have sex with loads of people,” Dawson writes. “[T]he prostate gland … feels amazing when massaged. Lots of men, gay or straight, like how this feels.”
“Let’s talk about dildos: I think a lot of people assume that where there is no penis, a desperate sexual void is created, out of which something [expletive] shaped must ultimately slot in order to satisfy,” the book also states. “I’ve only ever slept with two women who enjoyed using dildos. I hate wearing a strap-on. I’ve only ever done it once and NEVER AGAIN!”
For this title, Butler notified the police.
But former Dearborn teacher Paul Bruce believes Dawson’s book has educational value, according to ABC 7 Detroit.
“It answers so many questions I wish could have been answered for me as a child,” Bruce said. “My life would have been so different.”
The book also instructs children on how to use dating apps, something which Butler said “I am worried if they do meet somebody (through the apps), they could get raped, kidnapped or trafficked.”
The school district appears to have been put on the defense, however, ensuring its constituents that it is not “banning books” which is the typical slight from leftists who wish to keep sexually explicit content in the hands of young children.
“We are not banning books, I want to make that very clear,” Dearborn Public Schools head of communications David Mustonen said. “What we are doing is evaluating the books in our inventory.”
The debate remains active at the school board, with parents speaking for or against the bans.
Breccan F. Thies is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow him on Twitter @BreccanFThies.