Most library books with transgender characters are already in the adult section

By Williesha Morris | wmorris@al.comA state public library board trustee is calling for thousands of library books to be reviewed and moved to the adult section, even though many of the titles are already shelved there.Alabama Public Library Service board member Amy Minton is pushing to hire a new executive director’s assistant to help librarians identify books that may violate APLS’ newest policy against children’s books with transgender people.“The hard work of our Alabama librarians is greatly appreciated but based on this information there are many Alabama public libraries that could be out of compliance,” Minton told AL.com.Minton said there are more than 8,000 books in 24 libraries across the state that haven’t been moved. After searching through the catalogs, adult and young adult books were included.“Many of the titles are listed more than once, since the same title can show up in separate lists with the same search terms,” said Dothan Houston County Public Library director Chris Warren. “In addition, the vast, vast majority of these titles are cataloged as adult, not children’s.”There are 194 titles with the keyword “transgender” in the Jefferson County Public Library catalog. Twelve titles are listed as “juvenile.”Montgomery City-County Public Library has 177 books with the keyword “transgender,” and all of them are in the adult or young adult section. Muscle Shoals Public Library’s catalog lists nine titles. All nine books are in the adult section.Minton said she appreciates that some books have been moved, but many other libraries may still be out of compliance and need help from an assistant. At the Aug. 20 board meeting, the trustees tabled the decision to hire a new director’s assistant, after staff members told the board the position wasn’t needed.Pennie Broussard, with APLS human resources, said there is already an assistant director position that fulfills the qualifications in the listing. Broussard said helping to identify non-compliant books wasn’t in the job description, because the APLS is an advisory committee.Re-cataloging books can be a long process. The Ozark Public Library closed for a month in 2024 to comply with state guidelines. Minton believes an assistant can help.Director Kelyn Ralya told the board that libraries “may be willing to leave state aid on the table.”Fairhope Public Library was denied state funding after the local library board determined not all of the challenged books were inappropriate. The Clay Public Library disaffiliated from the APLS in 2024.Morris is an award-winning journalist whose experience goes back 30 years. She's delighted to be covering libraries and higher education. She's also covered video games, accessibility and pop culture as a...