At Monday night’s Botetourt County Board of Supervisors regular meeting for July, Botetourt County leaders unanimously adopted a resolution in support of the protection of citizens’ First Amendment and parental rights in Botetourt County libraries. The resolution stated that the Botetourt County Board of Supervisors actively supports and defends citizens’ First Amendment rights including:
- The right to read and access information freely and to form their own opinions.
- Defends parental rights to choose content that is suitable for their own families and children, but not to determine what is appropriate for other families and their children.
- Affirms the Botetourt County Library’s existing policies and practices to protect minors by requiring minors under the age of 13 to be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult, and by providing for collection transparency and parental/guardian access and control in minors’ use of library materials, services, resources, and events.
- Supports the Botetourt County Library’s existing policies and procedures guiding the selection and deselection of materials reflecting the needs and interests of the community, without discrimination against or preference for specific individuals, groups, or viewpoints.
- Affirms the Botetourt County Library’s vital role in protecting citizens’ constitutional and parental rights and enabling all citizens to understand and navigate a complex world.
Additionally, during the meeting, Botetourt County Board of Supervisors Chair Dr. Mac Scothorn shared a recommendation that he stated he would share, on his own behalf, with the Botetourt County Library Board that it considers prohibiting minors (under age 18) from visiting county libraries unaccompanied except for 16 and 17-year-olds who have been granted written permission by a parent to do so.
The Botetourt County Library’s current policy, which was endorsed by the Board of Supervisors, is that children under the age of 13 must be supervised by a parent or responsible adult over the age of 18.
Since last spring, a group of Botetourt residents have actively spoken out about materials in Botetourt libraries that could be considered “sexually explicit” or “pornographic.” Public comments continued Monday night opposing and supporting Botetourt libraries.
To read the full resolution, visit www.botetourtva.gov/DocumentCenter/View/3814/BOCO-BOS-Resolution-in-Support-of-Citizen-Rights-7-31-23.
~ Fincastle Herald staff report
