The group that began expressing concern over adult content in children's books at the Prattville-Autauga Library is displeased with the recent decision by the Autauga County Library Board to require children under 16 to be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
For months, residents have attended the Autauga County Commission and Prattville City Council, often reading excerpts from the children's books with sexually explicit content.
In April, 1819 News reported on several mothers expressing concern with LGBTQ+ children's books in the Autauga-Prattville Public Library, available for any child to read at will.
The result was the formation of two groups opposed to the books, Clean Up Prattville and Clean Up Alabama. The former focuses on the Prattville library, while the latter addresses statewide library issues.
After months of debate at the city council and county commission, the city council recently voted against restricting sexually explicit material from minors at the library.
On Thursday, the library board voted on the new restrictions after public comment.
Despite being lauded by public officials as a method to quell the concerns of those who oppose the books, Clean Up Alabama stated emphatically that it did not support the rule change, nor did it suggest it.
"The Autauga Prattville library board came up with a new policy, which is a current policy but with the age raised from 12 to 15," Clean Up Prattville said in a statement. "The policy now says that children 15 and under cannot be unattended in the library. They must remain with their parent or guardian at all times."
"Clean Up Alabama did NOT request or encourage this rule change NOR does it endorse it," the organization added. "We have asked and are asking for common sense policies that protect kids from exposure to all inappropriate materials. The above policy in no way solves this issue."
It continued, "The library board in their own words said that we (Prattville parents who have filled out reconsideration forms) have only brought 48 of the 70,000 books in their collection to light for inappropriate content, and yet they would rather police YOUR family and YOUR children than simply move those 48 books somewhere that would require parental consent to access."
Members of Clean Up Alabama told 1819 News the entire purpose of challenging the books was not to require "babysitting" at the library. Rather, it was to allow children to roam the library without parents having to worry about their children being exposed to sexually explicit material.
"That is how much they want completely unrestricted access to all materials for minors no matter the content, no matter how explicit," the organization continued. "We, at Clean Up Alabama, want a library that is a safe and enriching environment for our children, one where they are FREE to roam the shelves and not accidentally happen upon inappropriate materials. We are NOT asking for more restrictions on children and families, we are asking for common sense standards and policies in our libraries that ensure our children are not exposed to inappropriate materials without parent consent."
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
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