Texas County Would Rather Close Their Public Library Than Return Banned Books to Shelves

In his decision, Pitman said that “the First Amendment prohibits the removal of books from libraries based on either viewpoint or content discrimination” and that “evidence shows defendants targeted and removed books, including well-regarded, prize-winning books, based on complaints that the books were inappropriate.”

Now, Llano County’s commissioners are holding a meeting April 13 to decide whether to close the public library entirely rather than return these 12 books to the shelves.

As Deborah Caldwell-Stone, director of the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, put it:

“Rather than return twelve books to the library’s collection that reflect the lives and experiences of LGTQIA+ and BIPOC persons, the members of the Llano County Commission and its Library Board are prepared to fire the dedicated staff of the Llano County Library System and deny Llano County residents access to all the information and community services that the library staff provides, simply to prevent anyone from reading certain books that these officials don’t ever have to read.”

The board has also appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to stay Pitman’s injunction.

Closing the library rather than returning books is extreme, but it’s not unprecedented. Jamestown, Michigan voted to defund their library in November after a smear campaign accused librarians of being “groomers” for carrying LGBTQ children’s books. Despite donations from across the country, the library will likely soon close without reliable funding.

I can’t help but hear echoes of other civil rights battles, too. In 1959, when Prince Edward County, Virginia was ordered to desegregate its public schools, the town instead shut them all down. White students attended private schools, which weren’t governed by the same rules. For Black students, though, there was no formal option for their education, and for five years, they had to travel or homeschool.