Dallas-based Half Price Books is leading the fight against a bill being considered in Austin. The bill would allow bookstores to be sued for selling or even displaying harmful material to minors. Supporters say it’s needed to protect children but critics call it censorship. Meredith Yeomans has the story.
Dallas-based Half Price Books is helping lead the fight against a bill being considered in Austin.
The bill would allow bookstores to be sued for selling or even displaying harmful material to minors. Supporters said it's needed to protect children, but critics call it censorship.
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President Kathy Doyle Thomas said that while Half Price Books workers love reading, reading every book that comes through its doors is unrealistic. Doyle Thomas said that's what her stores would be expected to do under a bill proposed by State Rep. Nate Schatzline, R-Fort Worth, District 93.
“How do we know in all of these books that we have in all of the stores across the state -- we don't know what's inappropriate. [They] could be inappropriate in Corpus Christi compared to Dallas, Texas,” explained Doyle Thomas.
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would hold bookstores liable for "damages arising from the distribution, transmission, or display of harmful material to a minor."
Schatzline told a House committee last month that it provides parents with the option to sue those who expose children to obscene content.
“As lawmakers, we have a duty to protect families and children from exploitation and from the unchecked spread of harmful spread of harmful materials in our communities and online,” said Schatzline.
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Doyle Thomas said titles in the romance, mystery and self-help sections would be at the top of the list of those at risk of being targeted.
“When I saw the bill, I was just frustrated and mad and I thought we have to do something about it,” she said.
, Doyle Thomas wrote that HB 1375 is “a threat to all booksellers” and asked them not to interfere with their ability to do business. Critics see this as the latest chapter in book censorship.
“Someone is trying to decide what I can and can’t read and my children can and can’t read and we do not think that’s fair or appropriate,” said Doyle Thomas.
The bill remains in a House committee and has not been voted on. Before it can become law, it must be approved by both the House and Senate and signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
The Texas legislative session is scheduled to end on June 2.
