Officials from the City of Fremont and Keene Memorial Library have declined to provide any information, details or answer questions about a newly created policy regarding the relocation of controversial content, books and materials found in the children’s section of the library devised by Fremont City Council Member Paul Von Behren.
The new policy addition was added as an amendment on Feb. 14 to the library’s policy manual during the city council meeting that night.
Von Behren said he had come up with the proposal as a way to satisfy all sides of the raging book controversy in the community.
During the Feb. 14 meeting, Von Behren said he had read the book “Sex is a Funny Word,” which was subject of an unsuccessful removal request by local business owner Sandra Murray, and in his opinion, it was not obscene. But, he did note that there may be solutions aside from total removal of books from the library.
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“The thing that is being overlooked is parental control,” Von Behren said on Feb. 14. “I asked about removing objectionable material from the children’s section (to the adult section).”
Von Behren’s proposal was approved in a 7-1 vote to be added to library policy.
That new policy created a new method in which the parent or legal guardian of a child user of the library, only if the child is age 11 years old or younger, can file a written request to the library director requesting that a book or other library material be relocated from the children’s section to the adult section of the library. The book would then be relocated, not fully removed from the library.
On Thursday, Feb. 16, follow-up questions emailed to Library Director Laura England-Biggs and Keene Memorial Library Advisory Board President Linda McClain were unanswered.
On Tuesday, Feb. 28, during an in-person interview, England-Biggs declined to comment on the policy.
“I have no comment on the policy. Legal counsel has advised me not to comment,” England-Biggs said before the start of the Feb. 28 meeting of the Fremont City Council. “I’d suggest you ask Mr. Von Behren about it. It was his policy.”
Prior to Feb. 28, the Fremont Tribune sent several other emails seeking answers to a series of questions about the new policy to England-Biggs as well as McClain, City Attorney Travis Jacott, Mayor Joey Spellerberg and Von Behren.
The only person who replied to the emails was Von Behren, who wrote a lengthy explanation of his policy to the Tribune.
“There was a simple reason for offering the amendment, to protect the right of parents to control what their children — 11 years old and under — see and read in the Children’s section,” Von Behren wrote to the Tribune. “Before offering it, I met with the library board president, director and city administrator, who patiently answered my questions. We discussed at least five options to address parents’ concerns, but there seemed no workable option for the library.”
Von Behren then stated the amendment was, “a compromise.”
“It censors nothing, applies only to the children’s section, keeps all books in the library and allows access to anyone who wishes to see them,” he added. “It is manageable for staff and treats all parents equally. Any parent, of any viewpoint, now has the ability to manage what their young children see and read while in the children’s section.”
Among the questions the Tribune was seeking clarification and answers to were:
- Is the new policy in place/effect now?
- Has the library or library board created a form — print/hard copy or online — for patrons to fill out yet?
- Does this new policy mean the relocation is automatic? Or, is it a request for relocation subject to library director’s review and decision?
- Can these requests by a parent be appealed by another parent who does want those materials in the children’s section?
The Tribune has filed a public records request with city officials seeking any and all documents related to the new policy added on Feb. 14 as well as its possible implementation.
