Group opposing sexually explicit children’s books welcomes rule change by Prattville library board; supporters remain silent

Clean Up Alabama, the group that launched the statewide movement against the inclusion of sexually explicit books in Alabama libraries, applauds the recent rule change by the Autauga-Prattville Library board of trustees that could create problems for a federal lawsuit filed against the board by those seeking to keep the books where they are.

On Monday, the library’s board voted to align its policies with new changes to the Alabama Public Library Service’s administrative regulations after Governor Kay Ivey proposed the regulations in response to nationwide concerns about sexually explicit children’s books.

A little over a year ago, residents began petitioning the City Council, Library Board and County Commission to address the problem. After months of back and forth, the council agreed. adopted a number of policy changes related to the procurement and display of books with sexual content and books with topics related to gender identity, transgenderism, and more.

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A group of lawyers in the state then filed a federal lawsuit against the board, claiming the new rules were unconstitutional, vague and overly broad. On Monday, however, the Autauga-Prattville Library Board changed its rules, clarifying procedures for placement, review and moderation of book content in the library.

SEE: Autauga-Prattville Library Board makes rule changes to align with state regulations amid federal lawsuit

The library board’s move could jeopardize the federal lawsuit. Because the board merely aligned its policies with those of the APLS, the lawsuit may need to be amended to include the state, which would require state intervention.

Read Freely Alabama, the state organization that fights to keep sexually explicit books on children’s library shelves, has not commented on the rule change, only sharing an article from the far-left, state-funded media site Alabama Political Reporter.

Meanwhile, Clean Up Alabama praised the board for “continuing to stand firm” despite the tumult of the past few months.

“Clean Up Alabama commends the Autauga Prattville Public Library Board of Directors for its continued, strong fight to protect Alabama’s children from being exposed to sexual content in public libraries,” the group said in a press release.

It continues: “Although Clean Up Alabama would prefer if inappropriate material were clearly defined in the state’s library policies, this step by APPL to define it in a resolution maintains the integrity of the intent to protect children from exposure to sexual content and will also ensure their protection.”

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