Book banning does not ‘bode well for social cohesion’, civil liberties council says

The NSW Council for Civil Liberties says the decision of a Sydney council to ban a book on same-sex parenting is “out of step with Australian values and is discriminatory”.

NSWCCL president Lydia Shelly said that banning books is the “polar opposite” of what public libraries are intended for – to provide “essential repositories of knowledge and information [with] spaces for learning, exploration, and intellectual freedom”.

"If books do not reflect a person’s religious, cultural or political beliefs, they are not forced to attend a library to read them. History tells us that banning books never bodes well for social cohesion."

NSWCCL accused Cumberland city council of allowing religious beliefs to be “weaponised against the LGBTQI community instead of demonstrating leadership and the values of our democratic, multi-faith country.”. The CCL is calling for a reverse of the book ban, and for an apology from the city council to the public for their initial decision. NSWCCL also calls for the councillors who approved of the motion to undergo inclusivity training.

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