LifePac of SW Washington

Life Issues/Family Ethics Political Action Committee

of Southwest Washington

In February of 2004, citizens presented a stack of recent and previous complaints from library users about library pornography to the Vancouver City Council. Many of the complaints were registered in the downtown library. The response was openly hostile from Mayor Pollard and Councilman Dan Tonkovich. The Vancouver City Council had been presented complaints in previous years about children accessing pornography in Vancouver libraries, and took no action. The public records of the complaints can be read here. Jeanne Stewart was the only council member to treat the citizens with respect, and to question pornography distribution in a facility that serves children.

Residents knock library on porn
Tuesday, February 24, 2004
By JEFFREY MIZE, Columbian staff writer

A handful of residents who slammed the Fort Vancouver Regional Library District on Monday for not blocking children from viewing Internet pornography received an equally sharp response from members of the Vancouver City Council.

... Council members listened to Camas resident Margaret Tweet, former Councilwoman Jeanne Lipton and others criticize the library for dragging its feet in implementing the Children's Internet Protection Act before they cut loose with their own volley.

... Mayor Royce Pollard said he found the timing of Monday's comments "interesting" ... "I object to Mrs. Tweet coming to the citizens of the city and telling them how to vote," Pollard said.

... Councilwoman Jeanne Stewart said the city council has no policy stating that people who speak to the council must live inside the city limits. The people who turned out to speak Monday were only exercising their First Amendment rights, she said. "What I saw from this panel was anger and hostility," Stewart said.

... Stewart agreed the issue is worth supporting, but she also said the library has failed to assure parents that their children won't be subjected to "a sexually charged atmosphere." "You don't take your kids to a tavern," she said. "You don't take them to a bar. "You don't take them to a strip club."

"Rian Girard, one of the city residents who spoke out Monday night, said he would normally support the bond measure but cannot because of the library's unwillingness to do more on Internet pornography."