The government of Singapore has banned children’s books featuring gay and lesbian characters.
The regime has required the National Library Board (NLB) to destroy three children’s books including: And Tango Makes Three; The White Swan Express: A Story About Adoption; and Who’s In My Family: All About Our Families.
TIME has more: “The ban was reportedly spurred by a complaint from a single library user who is also a member of the Facebook group “We Are Against Pinkdot in Singapore.” The NLB boasts a collection of more than five million books and audio-visual materials, and a spokesperson toldChannel News Asia that it acts on less than a third of the 20 or so removal requests received each year. (James Patterson’s Kill Me If You Can, which depicts incest, was the subject of a complaint but remains on the shelves.)”
The ban has prompted outrage from activists who have taken to Twitter to express their dismay with the decision using the hashtag #FreeMyLibrary. In addition, activists have written a letter criticizing the decision, which collected 4,600 signatures as of 8:00am on July 10th.