Speaks up for Moms

It’s time we join together for the rights of parents and raise our children to be responsible and contributing members of society. In regards to the op-ed written by Beth Farnum on behalf of DFA (Feb.23) the publication “Journal of the Absurd” referenced is a collection of short stories, one of them by Annie Sprinkle. Annie Sprinkle (real name Ellen Steinberg) began her lengthy career as a prostitute and in the porn industry. Later she left the porn industry to focus on artistic pursuits that she claimed would promote healthy attitudes towards sexuality and women. In fact, Sprinkle attained a PhD in human sexuality. She also obtained federal funding for a project for National Endowment for the Arts. So, for all intents and purposes she should be considered a professional, right?

Ms. Farnum states that the writings of Ms. Sprinkles are not appropriate for a school library. On that point we agree! However, she trips on her on reasoning by quoting a “cherry picked” story in the book. And that begs the question no one has been able to answer for me, “What does a graphic passage have to do with the literary content of a book?” Another book mentioned in her op-ed is Push, by Sapphire. The movie Precious is based on that book. The movie was critically acclaimed and won 2 Oscars. It was also rated R, which meant that no one under 17 was admitted without a parent or guardian. In the book, there is also a section that relates in graphic detail the rape of an infant. I don’t recall whether the movie includes this scene, or if it is related in such graphic detail, but in my opinion this detail alone should fall under the category of parental choice in determining whether or not your child should be permitted to take the book out of the school library, even though the subject matter, as a whole, while hard to read, perhaps occurs in real life more often than we would like to admit.

To add to this, Ms. Sprinkle is also a member of the LGBTQ community. If Ms. Farnum applies her reasoning to what she assumes is the objective of Moms For Liberty then she is obviously against the LGBTQ community. Do I believe that? No. And neither should those who speak out against the objectives for Moms for Liberty without evidence.

Carol Rebert,

Orrtanna