Library book removal request denied

A crowd gathered at a meeting of library board to voice their opinions.

Thursday afternoons are typically quiet at the Gunnison library. But on Feb. 17 the building was filled to standing room only. Patrons with stacks of books in their arms, wanting to make returns, took one step inside the building, saw the crowd and walked back out the door. Inside were more than 75 community members voicing their opposition to a request to remove a book — “Gender Queer: A Memoir” — from the library’s collection.

On November 19, 2021 Gunnison County Libraries Executive Director Drew Brookhart received a “Request for Reconsideration of Materials Form” from Crested Butte resident Rebecca White. She objected to the book’s content, particularly the sexual content, and wanted it to be removed from the county library collection, where it was available in the juvenile section.

The book, which is a comic-book style graphic memoir written and illustrated by Maia Kobabe, describes the author’s experience growing up as nonbinary and asexual. It contains images of sex, sex toys and masturbation. In some of those images, it is unclear whether the persons having sex are minors or adults. One cartoon (page 136) is of a sexual fantasy involving Plato’s “Symposium” and shows what appears to be a man having sex with a boy.

White’s request to remove the book came before the library board on Feb. 17 during a general discussion about the collections of the library district. The majority of public comment was from community members who opposed the book’s removal and supported the inclusion of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and asexual literature in the library collection.

In her November request to remove the book, White alleged that the book was in violation of a handful of state laws involving the sexual exploitation of children. Brookhart did not immediately respond to White’s complaint.

But White drew attention to her request on Feb. 15, when she spoke before Gunnison County commissioners during the public comment portion of their meeting. She said she had contacted Brookhart multiple times but had received no response.

Speaking about the several books in the library’s young adult section that she described as “there to help young people understand their sexuality,” and to “promote gender disphoria” White said, “Some of these books are objectionable and in my opinion actually do not meet the standards for not being pornography. Colorado libraries are not exempt from the obscenity, pornographic laws in the State of Colorado.”

White said “Gender Queer” was the “pinnacle of the mountain of books that discuss gender disphoria” on the shelf at the library. “Gender Queer” is also in the catalogue of the Gunnison Watershed School District, White said. And the same group of books on the subject can be found at libraries across the country, she said.

“Minors, in my opinion, should not have this book available to them,” White told commissioners. “I simply would like this book not be shelved in the young adult section.”

In the days that followed, emails circulated around the valley urging library patrons to show their support for diversity and their opposition to White’s request at the Feb. 17 library board meeting. Anticipating that many would wish to comment, the library board decided to make time in its agenda for public input, Brookhart said. 

While the library board did not make a decision at the meeting, Brookhart addressed a letter to White on Feb. 18 notifying her that the book would not be removed from the library system. He noted the sections of state law regarding sexual exploitation that White had listed in her written complaint.

“I have reviewed Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe. Gunnison County Library District’s legal counsel has also reviewed the Colorado Revised Statutes you have referenced,” Brookhart wrote. “I have concluded that Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe should be available to the residents and visitors of Gunnison County, Colorado. The memoir will remain in the collections of Gunnison County Library District.”

As the executive director of the library district, Brookhart holds final say on whether an item remains or is removed from the collection. 

Public comment

Although the library board meeting was not centered on whether to keep the book on the shelves, more than 30 local residents provided written and in-person comments about the importance of “Gender Queer” and similar books at the libary. Each person was given three minutes to speak in front of the board and the crowd that had gathered. Brookhart began by reading a written comment submitted by Gunnison High School student Blue Noble.

“As someone who is LGBTQIA+ myself, I love seeing representation in literature,” Noble wrote. “I was struggling a lot before I discovered who I was and didn’t really have characters I could relate to or books that gave me new sexualities or genders to consider. It was always just me by myself … Everyone always sees straight, cisgendered characters, and most people can relate to them, but what about those of us who don’t?” 

Crested Butte resident Alex Stefan has a background in education and now serves as the social-emotional learning coordinator for Gunnison County Juvenile Services. She said over 100 LGBTQ+ young people live within the valley, not including queer adults. 

“By ensuring this library has a diverse and inclusive collection, you are providing a safe space for us in the valley who quite often feel unsupported and unseen in this community,” Stefan said. 

“The book ‘Gender Queer’ is not pornography,” she continued. “It is not a kink, it's not a fetish. This book is a powerful resource for young people to learn about queer sex in a safe, responsible way.”

White spoke at the meeting, as well. She attended via web conferencing.

“My only objection to this book is the fact that it is in the young adult section, and it has pictures of explicit sex scenes,” White said.

“They are too explicit in my opinion for someone under the age of 18. I’m not asking for this book to be removed from the library, simply put it in the adult section … The book right now sits on the shelf at about a 6-year-old eye level. A child could just walk by there and open that up and see something that their parents may not be ready for them to see.”

Ashley Weinmeister, one of the lead members of Spectrum, a LGBTQ club on Western’s campus, said she disagreed that the images are too much for younger people to read. 

“I believe it is right where it should be because when I was younger, when I was in high school and middle school, I was in all of these sex-ed classes that I was forced to go to, and they never seem to fit,” Weinmeister said. “Having a book like this is the difference between growing up thinking that you’re broken and knowing that you’re not alone, that there are others who feel like you. Having it in the young adults section, I don’t think that’s anything bad. It belongs there because it's the young adults who are struggling most.” 

In an email to the Times on Feb. 20, Brookhart noted that many young adult books, both fiction and nonfiction, involve some aspect of human sexuality. 

“People tend to be very capable of making good decisions for themselves — even at a young age,” Brookhart wrote. “In most families, parents are also very involved in their children’s discovery of the public libraries’ resources. Anyone can check out any item in the library. Professional staff are adept at helping people find appropriate material for their interests and reading level.” 

Brookhart said the book is caught up in a sweeping effort to censor collections in school and public libraries. This is the first book challenge he has received within the district since he stepped into his role in 2017, he stated.

“Maia Kobabe’s memoir has been central to groups interested in censorship and has been used to spark local political debates, difficult school board meetings, and in some cases positive community discussions,” Brookhart wrote. “Since fall of 2021, book challenges have increased dramatically nationwide. More than 330 unique cases were reported to ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) in the three-month period between Sept. 1 and Nov. 30, 2021, a likely record-breaking statistic.” 

Speaking with the Times on Tuesday, White said her request had been misunderstood.

“I am not trying to attack the LGBTQ community, it’s all about whether the book, ‘Gender Queer’ is obscene or not,” White said.

Sharon Schlegel, president of the Gunnison Branch American Association of University Women, said that since founding the library, the association has supported the inclusion of all books and worked to get adequate funding to grow the library’s collection.

“A community is only as strong as all of its members and their understanding of each other,” Schlegel wrote in a comment to the library board. “(The) banning of any book limits that understanding,”.

(Bella Biondini can be contacted at 970.641.1414 or bella@gunnisontimes.com.)