ORANGE CITY, Iowa (AP) - Library officials in northwest Iowa are deciding how to respond after a religious activist burned four LGBTQ children’s books.
Orange City library director Amanda Vazquez told The Sioux City Journal that officials aren’t sure if they’ll replace the destroyed books.
“We’re exploring our options at this point,” she said.
Paul Dorr, the director of religious group Rescue the Perishing, released a nearly 30-minute video on Facebook Live in which he denounced the library for having the LGBTQ books and threw them in a burning barrel. The video was made on Oct. 19, the first day of the city’s gay pride festival.
Dorr burned David Levithan’s “Two Boys Kissing,” Suzanne and Max Lang’s “Families, Families, Families,” Gayle E. Pitman’s “This Day in June” and Christine Baldacchino’s “Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress.”
The library will follow official policy regarding stolen or lost books, Vazquez said. The library charges a fine of 10 cents each day a book isn’t renewed after a three-week checkout period and revokes privileges once the fine exceeds $2.01.
The library sends an itemized bill of costs and materials once a book has been overdue for 28 days. A certified letter with an itemized bill and a “notification of criminal action” is sent after 60 days. The library director can contact law enforcement or the county attorney about a book theft if the borrower doesn’t respond.
Dorr previously told the newspaper that he doesn’t plan to replace or pay for the books.
Dorr could be charged with misdemeanor fifth-degree theft if he doesn’t respond to the library’s fine. He could be fined between $65 and $625 and face 30 days in jail if convicted.
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Information from: Sioux City Journal, http://www.siouxcityjournal.com
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