Today is the day when the rubber hits the road and the offensive Librarian Lock up bill House Bill 1239 – which should be heard on the Senate Floor today.
Who is bringing this mess on South Dakota? Make a list. Because you should really consider whether they should be asked back during the next election:
House Bill 1239
Title: revise certain affirmative defenses to dissemination of material harmful to minors and obscenity offenses.
Sponsors: Representatives Soye (prime), Aylward, Baxter, Hughes, Ismay, Jordan, Kayser, Manhart, May, Novstrup, Rice, Schaefbauer, and Sjaarda and Senators Nelson (prime), Carley, Grove, Perry, Peterson (Sue), and Voita
Not a shocker that we have some of the worst offenders to foist big government upon South Dakotans sponsoring this measure, the Lock-Up Librarians Act, to subject librarians, teachers, museum workers and others to up to 1 year in the county jail if a minor checks out a book that someone takes offense to.
This measure is crazy-pants zealotry at it’s worst. Don’t forget that one of the bill sponsors (White History Month follower Travis Ismay) directly stating in committee that an arrest might be insufficient punishment, noting “If a librarian rented this out to my son or daughter, you’d be lucky if you got hauled out of there in handcuffs,” Ismay said. “So, yes, if they’re breaking the law anyway, why would we have any problem with librarians getting hauled out of the library in handcuffs?”
I don’t think some of these legislators realize that this is a bill whose impact will go much deeper than the superficial political flack of the hour, here today and gone tomorrow. But this bill cuts across all political lines. This bill goes directly to joe six-pack and suzy homemaker and is one which digs deep into communities as it will affect families who will no longer be able to send their child to the library to check out a book. In fact, it may go so far as to shut down libraries who will no longer want to take on the liability.
Why do I keep harping on this issue? It underlines – with an exclamation point – the disconnect South Dakota Legislators have with the true base of Republican voters. Because the base isn’t the 5% squawking about this silliness – it’s messing with the 90% who are usually ambivalent, and gives them an issue to hook into on what’s wrong with Pierre.
If you want to pass it, go ahead. But you will see it back in postcards in the 2026 election cycle. I can guarantee you that.
Don’t let this be the legacy that the 2025 Legislative session leaves South Dakota. Call your legislator at 605-773-3821, or e-mail your legislator, and tell them to kill the embarrassing Lock Up Librarians bill (HB 1239.)
Or don’t. And you’ll hear about it later.
Maybe the title should be changed to “Soye’s Lockup Librarians” bill.
Well considering all of my legislators are sponsors, it will fall on deaf ears
I hope you are not proud of the stupidity of your District legislators.
Ah. No. D3 and D1 legislators believe their spouses should be barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen.
Plus they have a strange fixation with legislating pant genital checkers.. Wheeler was the latest of many pointing out just how vague and open to lawsuits plus causing problems that bathroom bill with be. These D3 and D1 Christian Nationalists will ram rod it into law no matter what the consequences it will bring.
Is someone gonna put pants on that statue of David in SF? I would hate to have a child semifinal scarred from that porno piece.
EMOTIONALLY scarred. Damn autocorrct
If this bill goes through, the Bible can not be seen by minors in a library setting. I’ll make sure it is enforced too. Soye is a dolt. You can tell she is nothing more than a spoiled child who hasn’t grown up.
South Dakota isn’t last in everything. Yet.
But some of these legislators want more guns in our universities and high schools but less vaccinations. They want book bans. They want to cut administrator pay in schools. They would impose their religion on students. They would have fewer people using seatbelts. And, of course, Medicaid cuts – leaving thousands without care.
They want us to be more like Arkansas or Alabama. As a result, we would become less educated, less healthy and live much shorter lives.
These bubbas will not stop until South Dakota is last in everything.
If these parent’s don’t like the sexy words in books, why don’t they run for their local school board? Or maybe they aren’t they type of people who would get elected? It makes no sense to threaten a librarian with jail. Get off your @$$ and run for office to make change.
If Travis Ismay gets an erection in the Periodical
section, does he have to report it to the librarian?
Let’s be real. He’s never been inside a library
“Rewards for good service should not be deferred a single day.”
Sun Tzu
The Art of War
Is “deferred” a sex word? It sounds like it could be. I say ban the book.