Councillor Steve Christou says he received death threats for his support of the effective ban on same-sex parenting books at Cumberland local government area libraries.
Christou has requested amendments to the council’s original motion that would require the children’s book at the centre of the debate to be placed in the libraries’ adult non-fiction section.
![Cumberland councillor Steve Christou seized tonight’s chaotic council meeting to make a clear pitch to voters before the NSW local government elections in September.](https://static.ffx.io/images/$width_300%2C$height_150/t_crop_auto/t_sharpen%2Cq_auto%2Cf_auto/6c0e741c82f7195505cf6394e3ba3ea89d074c4f)
Cumberland councillor Steve Christou seized tonight’s chaotic council meeting to make a clear pitch to voters before the NSW local government elections in September.Jessica Hromas
The changes,backed by councillor Eddy Sarkis,would also compel the council’s general manager to “implement procedures to ensure children under 18 can only access books which are age appropriate”.
Should those changes be introduced,Christou would want the general manager to conduct a review to ensure the council was complying with the new procedures.
Explaining his position,Christou said:“People approached me and voiced their opinions. I have received death threats,I have received abuse,my family has been abused … they don’t deserve that.”
Christou said that,despite these threats,he would continue to represent the views of concerned residents,insisting his opposition to the material was “not an attack on gay or same-sex couples”.
“What we’re saying is,address the concerns of locals and place the book in the adult section of the library.
“We cannot have toddlers asking questions of their parents about genders and ‘non-binary’ that their parents are not ready to face.”
Christou ended his speech with a clear pitch to voters before local government elections in NSW later this year.
“September is around the corner,you will see tonight which councillors represent you,and which councillors don’t. You will get an opportunity to vote on your elected representatives.”