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The Gwinnett County, Georgia, library board voted 2–1 June 8 to remove The Basketball Diaries by Jim Carroll from the shelves of the 11-branch Gwinnett Forsyth Regional Library system, subject to a legal determination of whether the book is harmful to minors under state law.
The board took the action while the chair and another board member were out of town. A member of Citizens for Family Friendly Libraries hailed the removal as "a good decision for the families of Gwinnett County and for the well-being of our children." Some 40 residents attended the meeting and at least one parent defended the book as a wake-up call to the dangers of drugs.
A June 9 Associated Press report said the board action asks a county solicitor to determine whether the book meets the state definition of being harmful to children, but it was unclear whether a lawyer's opinion would suffice.
Posted June 15, 1998.
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