Imagine a librarian making a "statement" like this. Whether you agree or disagree with the policies of a president, these kinds of dangerous polemics discredit the individual making them and are a smear on librarians in general. Hickson should be roundly called out by those in her profession.
Has another school librarian made another stochastic threat against President Trump?
Some people are able to withstand the onslaught of temptation and persecution that accompanies truth-tellers. They take their oath to the Constitution of the United States seriously. They are people of honor and integrity. Matthew Lohmeier is one such man. His book can be checked out of our library HERE.
“The subtle and deadly change of heart that might occur in you would be
involved with the realization that a civilization is not destroyed by
wicked people; it is not necessary that people be wicked but only that
they be spineless.”―
James Baldwin,
The Fire Next Time
The feckless Missouri Senate may breathe a sigh of relief when their 'conscience' is termed out, but they will be much the poorer for his absence. If only there were a few legislators willing to go Full Moon, it could change everything. Alas, honor and courage are in short supply these days.
David Rice has exposed how HB3005, a bill pertaining to public libraries is rife with errors. The bill was pushed through quickly and quietly and is awaiting a vote before the end of this year's legislative session. Here's a portion. Go read the whole thing HERE.
The Unconstitutional Library
A
new library bill threatens parent and patron rights, supplanting the
freedom to think by codifying ALA theories into Missouri law.
We have expectations that the materials our sons and daughters read at the library, school or public, will be safe. Though many of us are waking up to the fact that these materials aren’t safe anymore. Books like the newly published Sibylline include a threesome with two young men and a woman [Right to Win Ozarks link], and one of the men (eighteen) was just killed. It’s necrophilia and the magic of sex and love bring the dead man back to life in the middle of raping his corpse.
Parents have demanded a rating system for movies, for music, are succeeding with an age-verification for porn sites across the US in many states (not Missouri though, thanks to our supermajority progressive Republicans). Yet, we can’t have a rating system for books? Except for Vendors and Publishers to recommend 12-17 year olds read a book about a corpse being raped?
This book is in our Christian County Library. It’s one of nearly 50 new books in the last six months that your child may be reading that is rated by the vendor for tweens and teens and the Library will allow anyone of any age to check out. In total, I have documented around four hundred books in our collection like this. If you have a precocious eight year old that can read above their grade level, the library won’t stop them from checking out books like this.
What is your duty as a parent? In this situation, you can go to the Library Board meetings, but that won’t help. You can write letters to your State Representatives. That won’t help either.
Our government in Missouri has decided they have an answer to our problems. Representative Doyle Justus (District 41) and Bill Lucas (District 115) have sponsored a bill, HB 3005.
The bill is only three pages long, but it has been perfected. In Missouri, that means it has cleared committee hearings, received public testimony, been amended and revised—in this case losing at least one significant protection along the way—passed out of committee as a substitute bill, gone to the full House floor for debate and second reading, and survived all of that. It now sits on the Informal Third Reading Calendar, which means it is one step from a final House vote.
All it takes is for Rep. Jon Patterson, the radical progressive Republican House Speaker from Lee’s Summit to bring it to a vote. He was so popular with the House Democrats, their radical progressive stepped aside for him like a coronation. He’ll bring HB 3005 to a vote with all the other bills at the end of the session when no one sees it coming.
HB 3005
HB 3005’s three pages reach for simplicity, but hide a complexity that will have to be unpacked. First, let’s analyze what sponsors will claim it does. Justus and Lucas will claim Libraries must now have a written policy detailing to patrons how to challenge books like Sibylline or Gender Queer. Libraries must post that policy in a public space. If a patron files a challenge, the material stays on the shelf during the review process. The challenger can only file a reconsideration if they have read the entire book or consumed the entire media (film or audiobook). If the challenger disagrees with the Libraries decision, they can appeal. The same material cannot be challenged again for two years. Library employees cannot be fired for refusing to remove a bookbefore the process completes.
If you are a sharp reader, you’ll have already seen several issues with what it proposes. One of the individuals who testified, provided a blistering legal takedown of it. The sponsors were warned it was unconstitutional and they moved forward anyway. I emailed Representatives Bob Titus and Burt Whaley, notifying both of her testimony to ask them if they plan to vote on this bill. I also emailed Rep. Justus and Lucas asking if they will withdraw this bill.
Further, I emailed all five board members of Christian County Library so you can see what they think about losing their statutory authority over their executive director and their ability to affect change in their community.
So far, out of the nine people I emailed, the only Rep to respond was Lucas. I promise I was polite.
I should have signed with x’s and o’s. Dang it.
Lucas’s response deflected blame like a little brother caught with a baseball bat in front of a broken window. Justus pitched. Lucas swung and Justus ran.
Lucas responded to my email with one sentence: "The author and sponsor of HB3005 is Representative Justus." When I pointed out I have evidence he’s the co-sponsor (recorded on the Missouri House website), he did not respond further...
BREAKING:
The Rutherford County Library in Tennessee voted 8-3 in favor of FIRING
library director Luanne James after she refused to move over 100 books,
including LGBTQ and DEI books, from the children's section to the adult
section.
It's worthwhile watching the video with the sound off at first. The reactions of those who are advocating for sexually explicit and age-inappropriate books are angry, loud and well-organized in their purple shirts.
This is not about the First Amendment or the so-called "freedom to read" or the fake "Library Bill of Rights," or censorship or banning books.
It's about indoctrinating children. Note that the books are still available in the adult section for those parents who are desirous of exposing their children to certain books. The opposition does not care that the books are still available in the library. They WANT ALL CHILDREN TO BE EXPOSED TO THOSE BOOKS. They want to force your children and grandchildren to be exposed to them, regardless of content, age appropriateness, and social indoctrination.
If this was not a very important battle, the Marxists and social justice warriors would not fight so hard.
School librarians are not “trusted experts” for children. 👧
Here is another reason why, from a mom of six.
“Freedom to Read Act” is from American Library Association—it sets school librarians as trusted experts. Do not sign that into law and repeal the others.
— Dan Kleinman @OccupyLibraries (@OccupyLibraries) March 16, 2026
By Gretchen Garrity
When libraries shelve and promote age-inappropriate materials, they contribute to harming children. Recourse for parents is often dismissive and burdensome. Sexualizing children is deeply evil and it should be readily identified as such. Introducing minors to gender ideology, sex and sexual situations before they are emotionally ready, and before their parents have consented, isunacceptable in taxpayer-funded organizations.
In a recent article, Dan Kleinman of Safe Libraries notes, "This
ongoing conflict underscores a core reality: as the Supreme Court has
affirmed, parents are the primary protectors of their children's best
interests and possess the fundamental constitutional right to direct
their upbringing and education without being shut out or overridden by
schools or public libraries.
Opponents,
however—a powerful vocal minority—have framed parental objections to
sexually explicit materials available to children as censorship,
successfully influencing policy in many districts and states to
effectively override family oversight regarding curriculum, access to
sexually explicit materials, and exposure to politically driven agenda
initiatives."
Recently, two Christian County Library Board members suggested that parents should be filling out challenge forms to alert the library to inappropriate books after the book Sybilline (discussed HERE and HERE) was exposed at a public meeting. The book was published in February. To his credit, the executive director also noted that speaking to staff could serve the same function.
As Kleinman notes, "Public schools and
public libraries place sexually explicit illustrations and text in front
of your children and require you to fight to protect your child from
accidentally seeing it."
Are librarians not trained to curate their collections in a manner that protects children? Why must citizens, who pay the salaries of these trained staff, be the ones to ferret out and object to sexualized and age-inappropriate books?
The reconsideration policy and forms are not designed to protect children or parents' rights. They are designed to retain books in the library, regardless of content. If you have ever filled one out and turned it in, you know what happens. See HERE. The book is almost always retained with reasons such as the book has been checked out recently, the book has numerous positive reviews and awards, the publisher determines age-appropriateness, one must not discriminate, and so on. At best it is a stall tactic. At worst it is meant to let parents know in no uncertain terms that the library knows best and you are to go away and let the experts get on about the business of the library.
The American Library Association (ALA) is so invested in the unquestioned authority of libraries to be the arbiter of appropriateness that they even have a confidential support form:
The ALA considers restricting access or relocating a book to the adult section as censorship or banning. It is neither, since no books are being suppressed (either in part or whole) and the government has not banned the book. These books are widely available at bookstores, online, etc. The argument has been successful in the past, but the courts are taking a second look and deciding that taxpayer-funded libraries have a right to curate their collections without forced exclusion or inclusion. Recent court decisions are also beginning to acknowledge and defend parental rights.
The ALA remains adamant that "the right of every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction" is a right that extends to children. Again, insisting that children have a "right" to be exposed to depictions of sex (of whatever kind), genitals, transgender ideology and so on is evil on its face.
In his article referenced above, Kleinman also writes, "Constitutional Parent's Rights appear
to be placed as secondary to a child's "right to read" which is not a
right at all, but a suggested library policy by the American Library
Association. "Freedom of Information," does not override Parent's
Rights, either, also a suggestion from the ALA, however public libraries
use both policies to potentially violate Constitutional rights of
parents with regard to children's education and development."
The Missouri Public Library Trustee Manual, which relies heavily on ALA ideology, provides a sample reconsideration policy HERE (page 76). It is very similar to the ALA sample reconsideration policy you can find HERE.
You can find the Christian County Library reconsideration form HERE.
On page 25 of the state trustee manual it states, "Trustees must recognize the right of citizens to question board actions and be willing to listen and explain the policies of the library. The board should offer an open, concerned image without accommodating censorship demands. [Bolding added] Have a simple procedure for the board to use when dealing with material challenges. The library director should be the first person that meets with the patron and receives the complaint. If the matter is not satisfactorily addressed by the director, then the library board is next in line to receive the complaint."
Again, the accusation against citizens is one of censorship. And again,
censorship involves government suppression, in whole or part, of speech
or writing. Neither is happening just because a public library decides
to curate its collection and abide by laws protecting children. And the Missouri trustee handbook flat out states that the library should offer a sense of concern "without accommodating censorship demands." It should be noted that the Missouri trustee handbook is not law. It promotes guidelines. No individual Missouri library must enforce or endorse them.
A library must take into consideration their patrons, including those who are minors and the laws governing their protection. Here is a portion of the Christian County Library policy on censorship. Although the board formally disassociated from the ALA, the LINK to a censorship policy differs from the updated materials policy that can be linked HERE. It should be updated to reflect the deletion of the policy below.
The fact is, the curation of library collections is primarily with those selecting, approving, and buying the books.
Book reconsideration challenges are used to identify
who objects to the books and how many times they submit objections. They
are performative on the part of the library. In essence they are written struggle sessions. To suggest a public library is incapable of properly curating a children's collection in accordance with laws designed to protect minors is also an insult to staff. Although parents are the lawful arbiters of judgment regarding their children, librarians who adhere to state and federal statutes regarding child protection would be generally in alignment. If there is a need for additional training, the executive director and board should make sure it happens.
Parents and other patrons should not have to scour the children's section to protect them from age-inappropriate and sexually explicit materials. Children should be allowed to remain free of such things in a library--the place where a world of knowledge, truth, and goodness should await them--not indoctrination, sexualization and degradation.
Instead of using reconsiderations as a 'gotcha' moment it would be a welcome surprise if the library took seriously the implementation of an updated collection policy. At the moment it is a pity reconsideration challenges could become a common avenue of collection curation, and not the library performing due diligence to protect the community's children.
Over three years ago, members of the community became aware that age
inappropriate and sexually explicit books were being shelved in the
Christian County Library's children and teen sections.
Appealing to the library board was ineffective. An uproar occurred,
resulting in several town hall events sponsored by the county
commission.
Citizens were
activated and began taking a closer look at how these books were
finding their way into our library system. At the top of the system
is the American Library Association, which works closely with some of
the biggest book publishers. Together, there is a tight system of
promoting agendas that run counter to a healthy culture that protects
children.
The publishers seek
out authors who are willing to produce books that often amount to
smut, and this blog has exposed many of them. Additionally, the ALA acts as the
arbiter of professional library training through their accreditation
monopoly, along with dozens of spin-off organizations that all
undermine a commonsense culture of protecting children.
The result: hundreds of age inappropriate books are marketed to children and
teens and made freely available to them, often right under
unsuspecting parents’ noses. At one point, it was noted that at least 400 such books were
shelved in our district’s four library branches. And the books keep
coming. Even if the books were all restricted/relocated today, book
purveyors are working hard to make sure more are coming down the
pipeline.
Due to the uproar, the
county commissioners took back the appointment process and began
vetting candidates for the library board. This resulted in a complete
turn over of the board during the last couple years. Three of the
five current board members were all previously active in advocating to
protect children from exposure to sexually explicit books.
How well have they
accomplished their goal? While there have been some gains such as
disassociating from the ALA (which still has a large influence), and updating the bylaws to better reflect library governance according
to statute, much remains to be done.
How many sexually
explicit books have been restricted or relocated? What is the
collection policy for children’s and teens’ books? Does it reflect state and federal law? Has the staff
been trained to review books before they purchase or do they simply
continue to rely on organizations like the ALA, various publishers and
reviewers? Are books bought in lots or bundles without review?
I ask these
questions because yet another sexually explicit book, just published in February 2026, has been
purchased and shelved in our library. That book is titled Sibylline.
It is described five times in the online catalog as “Juvenile
fiction.” The publishers originally marketed this book for ages
14-17, but the outrage among reviewers who received advance copies of
the book was such that the book is now being marketed for age 17 and
up. An incremental concession by the publisher.
There is at least
one copy in the Ozark library’s teen section (ages 12-17). The book
contains the rape of a minor, explicit sex, a 'threesome', and 'adjacent'
necrophilia. Let me explain. The teen was described as not breathing,
as motionless, as dead. That he was found not to be dead pages later
is little consolation to the non-consensual nature of the sex scene.
The comments at
Goodreads
are hard hitting and unusual for a secular review site. And here is a
short discussion of Sibylline with Allie Beth Stuckey and Anne Sey of
Library4kiddos.com.
At a January strategic planning meeting, the library's Executive Director Will Blydenburgh planned to begin formulating an updated collection policy. His idea was to present at the February meeting a portion of a collection policy--the introduction and scope. He promoted the idea of presenting to the board a collection policy in "chunks" on an ongoing basis. "Maybe
we can do another addition, you know, whether it's March or April.
We'll see where we stand. But we'd get started in February for that
meeting," he said (advance the video to about 59 minutes).
That
did not happen. What happened was an assertion the collection policy
was being worked on, but there was no draft of even the beginning of a
policy. What did happen amounted to a diversionary tactic: the
presentation of an Amazon Wish List that citizens could access to buy
and donate books to the library. Video HERE (advanced to the 1:05:00 time stamp).
The thing is, AI can write a collection policy in seconds, formulated and geared toward the needs of Christian County. It could be tweaked and polished, added to or corrected in any manner.
I know because I did it. Choose any AI program you want to, add in any applicable laws and so on. Indeed, there are many well-written collection policies that are ALA-averse and easily available. I believe the library board is aware of at least one or two.
So, the question must be asked: Why is a collection policy taking a year or more to formulate? Why are drafts going to be provided in "chunks" while books like Sibylline are still being purchased by library staff and shelved where children have access?
We have a new library board,
and a new executive director who has been on the job for seven full months now. And still the vile sexually explicit books
are being purchased with taxpayer funds, shelved in our library and made available to minors.The book
Sibylline has been checked out. Your child may be reading it right now.
The Library's bylaws state in Art. VIII: "The Board of Trustees has the following powers and responsibilities:
●Policy Setting: The board establishes library policies, including rules for the operation and use of library facilities and services in coordination with the Executive Director."
There were subcommittee meetings in March and April of 2025 that discuss formulating a policy for the children's collection. It is worth giving a listen to HERE and HERE. The groundwork was being laid. It has since been laid to rest, apparently.
It's a shame the library board is dithering--unable or unwilling
to do the job they were appointed to do in a timely manner. Meanwhile, children have unrestricted access to books like Sibylline. More such books are undoubtedly en route.
There is a library board meeting tonight at 6 p.m. The agenda does include a "Collection Development Policy Update" under Old Business.
Are free speech rights being suppressed? The article is behind a paywall. But you can see where the county library CEO says it is a move to make all feel welcome at the library. Wondering if library patrons have been avoiding the library...
St. Charles County libraries ban LGBTQ flags, other 'personal beliefs' decor https://t.co/X3QqjcTS8g
