The "Burning" Question: Who Controls the Library Shelves in Montgomery County?

Last August an article ran in the Conroe Courier that initiated a pitched battle in Montgomery County over community standards and censorship. The headline, a clarion call to all sides of the political spectrum, read, "Library book containing sexual content banned from county library."
     At issue was the children's book, "It's Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex & Sexual Health" written by Robie H. Harris and illustrated by Michael Emberley, a sex education title which, according to Montgomery County Judge Alan B. Sadler, "...clearly tries to steer the child toward being pro-homosexual or at least neutral." The action of pulling the book from the library shelves was taken after a group of citizens voiced their opinions on the book's content at the August 26, 2002 Commissioners Court meeting. Within days another title by Harris, "It's So Amazing!: A Book About Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families" had also been pulled.
     What followed could only be described as a firestorm of unwelcome media attention as charges of censorship and old-fashioned book burning were raised against county officials.The last -- and only other -- book to have been pulled from the Montgomery County Library shelves was Madonna's shocking photo-biography, "Sex," published in 1992.
     In defense, Judge Sadler countered that the issue at hand was whether the books' content, which contains descriptions and cartoon-like drawings of homosexuality, abortion, and AIDS, was appropriate for children. A review of "It's Perfectly Normal" in the library-trade publication Booklist stated, "This caring, conscientious, and well-crafted book will be a fine library resource as well as a marvelous adjunct to the middle-school sex-education curriculum. There's no doubt, however, that some libraries and schools will have problems with Emberley's plentiful pictures, which, besides being warm and unaffected, are eyepoppers – especially in a book for this age group." Booklist is a commonly used resource for public and school librarians when considering acquisitions.
     Following the initial media reports, Judge Sadler explained that the Commissioners Court was not "banning" the books, as had been reported, but was asking for a review of their content. He received over 1,000 emails from residents voicing their opinions on the subject. Most, he said, were in favor of pulling the books from the shelves.
     County Commissioner Craig Doyal was quoted as saying, "We will make every effort to get books like this completely out of the library." His view was hailed by local members of the Republican Leadership Council, and decried by the citizens' group Mainstream Montgomery.
     Also at issue was whether the titles were shelved in the appropriate section of Montgomery County Library. "I don't want to have to police what my child looks at in the kids’ section," said one concerned parent. "It's not censorship if you move a book to the adults' section of the library."
     In November a review was made by a 10-member committee consisting of five librarians and five county residents, and by the end of the month the books were back on the library shelves in their original classifications (juvenile and young adults nonfiction sections), this time with a long waiting list of people who want to check the books out. Over 650,000 copies of “It’s Perfectly Normal” have been published since the book's release in 1994. According to the author, the book has been removed from library shelves or protested in five different states.
     Were Montgomery County community standards upheld? "We're very pleased that they came to the right conclusion," said a Mainstream Montgomery spokesman, while the Republican Leadership Council opined, "This is the process that the commissioners have instituted, and right now we have to abide by that decision." CS