Cumberland City Council has reversed its ban on same-sex parenting books.
Cumberland resident Caroline Staples spoke at the meeting, presenting a petition with over 42,000 signatures in favour of the ban being dissolved.
University of Wollongong lecturer in Communications and Media, Chris Comerford has welcomed the change.
“A library is meant to be a place of learning, and the fact of our reality is that same-sex families are a thing, and they’re a thing that children are a part of,” Dr Comerford said.
Councillor Steve Christou proposed the ban during a council meeting earlier this month after local parents were “distraught” when they found a book titled ‘Same-Sex Parenting’ in the children’s section of their local library.
Image: Alexander Lewis, ABC
In the original meeting where the books were banned, Cr Christou said the books did not align with the community’s conservative values.
“This community is a very religious community it is very family-orientated,” he said.
Illawarra same-sex parents, Bek Alman and Lucy Alman are pleased the ban has been overturned for Cumberland residents.
“I understand that many cultures have their own beliefs and may not agree with other people’s lifestyles, but we’re in 2024 now. It’s crazy that it even came to that,” Ms Alman said.
GLAAD Media Institutes’ latest, ‘Where We Are on TV?’ report also shows a downward trend in LGBTQ+ representation on television.
Dr Comerford said there is a growing trend in media bans surrounding LGBTQ+ themes.
“We’re seeing a significant increase in texts that would have been considered completely fine and placid to be consuming but are now being banned because of ideological culture wars over there (the USA),” he said.
LGBTQ+ characters across all platforms by UOWTV
Ms Alman said she is disappointed that LGBTQ+ representation has declined.
“I think it’s really important for our community to be represented in the media to normalise it and not discriminate it. It’s normalising diversity,” she said.
Same-sex parenting books will now be available in Cumberland Council’s libraries children section.