Barbara Jordan, please give me strength.

This past Thursday, I was back at the Texas Capitol to testify (again) in opposition to House Bill 3225 — this time, before the Texas Senate Committee on State Affairs.

(The committee met inside the Senate chamber, which meant I had a great opportunity to get close to the portrait of former Texas State Senator Barbara Jordan, the subject of my picture book What Do You Do with a Voice Like That? The Story of Extraordinary Congresswoman Barbara Jordan.)

As the Texas Freedom to Read Project has summarized, HB 3225 would:

Ban anyone under 18 from accessing “sexually explicit” materials—a term so broadly defined that it includes books with any descriptions of ‘sexual conduct,’ regardless of context or intent.

Prevent libraries from curating or displaying many important books in teen and children’s sections, including sex-education materials, young adult novels, and even classic literature and art books.

Restrict youth from accessing the general collection—even for school assignments or research—potentially blocking students from reading The Great Gatsby, The Color Purple, or Beloved.

Force libraries to implement costly, impractical segregation of books and spaces, or risk legal consequences.

Here is my testimony:

My name is Chris Barton. I’ve used Texas libraries since I was a kid, and now I write children’s books found in many of them. And I guarantee you that the public libraries in the communities you serve are some of the best things going in your districts. 

So why make Texas public libraries harder to use?

That’s what this bill would do. 

This bill started with one parent in Tyler who didn’t like that he couldn’t control what books his kids might see at a library serving the entire community.

Texarkana is 100 miles from Tyler, Senator Hughes — why should library patrons there suffer because of some parent’s complaint about a book he claims he found in Tyler?

Same for parents in Prosper, Senator Paxton. And in Richardson, Senator Hall. Why would you let a gripe about book options at a library in Tyler interfere with your constituents’ freedom to read?

Senator Parker, the Bridgeport Library is 170 miles away from Tyler. Senator Bettancourt, the library serving Jersey Village is 200 miles away. How would your constituents feel about forbidding teens from doing research anywhere but the children’s section? 

Senator Schwertner, I can’t imagine that your constituents who use the Round Rock library will find it any more acceptable.

Senator Birdwell, have you talked with Stephenville city staff about the consequences for them because someone in Tyler doesn’t trust his kid to read independently?

Senator Middleton, this bill would turn the Rosenberg Library — 250 miles from Tyler — from a temple of knowledge into a shrine to the nanny state. 

400 miles away is the Mahon Public Library in Lubbock, Senator Perry. The library in Laredo is 450 miles away, Senator Zaffirini. That’s quite the reach for a petty complaint from Tyler. 

Brownsville is 500 miles away, Senator Hinojosa. How is keeping the 16-year-olds in your district from accessing the adult section of the library going to help your constituents?

This is a family issue, not a State Affairs issue. Parents don’t need anyone telling them where in their public libraries their own kids can go. They don’t need it in Tyler, and they don’t need it anywhere else. Vote against this bill.