September 9, 1998



Ms. Susan A. Stewart
Library Director
Hall County Library
127 Main Street, N.W.
Gainesville, Georgia 30501-3614

Dear Ms. Stewart:

     I am writing on behalf of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation.  We are an organization that seeks to advance the cause of open government and monitors freedom of information throughout the state and it has been brought to our attention that you may be refusing to include Southern Voice among the many text periodicals located in your library.  Because a restriction could potentially impinge upon significant First Amendment rights, I wanted to bring to your attention the legal authority that bears on this issue.

     It is well-settled that the First Amendment "embraces both the right to distribute literature... and necessarily the right to receive it."  Martin v. City of Struthers, 319 U.S. 141 (1943).  A refusal to include Southern Voice among your library's periodicals simply because it deals with gay and lesbian subject matter, or deals with it in a positive light, would represent a content-based regulation that can only be sustained upon a showing of a compelling governmental interest.  It is difficult to imagine that the library could demonstrate such an interest given the presence already of many gay fiction and non-fiction works currently in your library collection, not be mention the fact that gay topics have been addressed prominently in innumerable periodicals and newspapers currently in your library collection including most recently recently in Newsweek.

     Viewpoint discrimination is impermissible.  Even in the more restrictive context of a local school board decision to restrict publications from school libraries, the U.S. Supreme Court has so held:

... we hold that local school boards cannot remove books from school library shelves simply because they dislike the ideas contained in those books and seek by their removal to 'prescribe what shall be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion, or other matters of opinion.'  Such purposes stand inescapably condemned by our precedents.  Bd. of Educ., Island Trees Union Free School Dist. N. 26 v. Pico, 457 U.S. 853, 872 (1982) (school board sought to remove materials because it concluded that they were "anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Semetic, and just plain filthy.")

     In addition to these legal concerns, a policy excluding Southern Voice would also appear to violate the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, a copy of which is attached.  Of particular interest are Articles 1 and 2, which state:

     Article 1:  Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves.  Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

     Article 2:  Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues.  Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

     We would appreciate an explanation from you as to the library's policy regarding Southern Voice.  I look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience.  Thank you.

                                                          Sincerely,



                                                          Hollie Manheimer,
                                                          Executive Director

Enclosure