Adults-only room in the works for a small library in northern Idaho

The library in Post Falls, Idaho, will soon have an adults-only room in light of a recent Idaho law passed last year.  That law requires school and public libraries in the state to restrict access to books that are considered “harmful” to minors. If libraries don’t do so, they could face lawsuits.

At a board of trustees meeting for the Community Library Network in Post Falls last week, people on both sides of the library debate showed up to discuss how to handle their book policy for libraries in Kootenai County in light of Idaho’s new law. 

One of them was Theresa Birkett. She’s the president of the Library Alliance of North Idaho — a grassroots organization of mostly retired women — that has been a part of library discourse in Idaho for years.

“We push back against censorship, we support our libraries, we support our librarian, we believe in parental rights — but those are all being taken away,” Birkett said.

As a parent and a grandmother, Birkett said she believes parents should be able to choose the books they feel are appropriate for their children.

“ We don’t want the state or a local library board telling us what’s appropriate for our children,” Birkett said. 

There are seven public libraries in Kootenai County, but the mature content collection will be housed at the Post Falls Library. (Credit: Devin Weeks / Couer d’Alene Press)

There have been 140 books pulled from shelves at the Post Falls Library to be reviewed by library staff as potentially harmful to minors. Birkett obtained the list with a public records request, she said.

Books that have been pulled for review include coming-of-age novels that feature romance and relationships. Books with fantasy themes have been pulled as well.

Right now, those books are sitting in the office of Martin Walters, the director of the Community Library Network. The books are currently unavailable for patrons, said Megan Ward, a communications specialist for the Community Library Network.

“We are creating a mature content collection,” Ward said. 

Karen Johnston, of Post Falls, introduced herself at the board meeting and said she finds the idea of not censoring certain information and opportunities for children “absolutely obscene.”

“I’m sorry, but my children did not have certain freedoms when they were growing up in my home,” Johnston said. “I censored a great deal for their good and their benefit.”

But creating a separate room for books deemed inappropriate could create a stigma for anyone who checks books out of the collection, Birkett said. 

She cited a 2003 case in Arkansas where parents sued a school district for restricting access to the Harry Potter series citing concerns over themes of disobedience and “disrespect for authority.”

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas ruled in favor of a fourth grader’s parents and ordered the Cedarville School District to put the fantasy books back on the school library shelves. 

“The court emphasized that such restrictions stigmatize students, imposing a chilling effect on their right to access material,” Birkett said. “This case provides a cautionary tale for your board implementing similar restrictions.”

Libraries throughout Idaho have grappled with the new law, developing their own rules for how to handle books deemed “harmful” to minors, but Birkett said people in Post Falls are going further.

Three months ago, Tim Plass, the Community Library Network’s board of trustees clerk, tried to put forward a policy for an adults-only book room with locks, video surveillance and a log book to keep track of who went in and out, Birkett said.

“We rallied our troops to write letters to the editor, we told the press everything and he backed down,” Birkett said. “It would have been a lawsuit.”

Plass did not return a call for comment on the policy. 

Not all Idaho libraries are having issues. Further south, Lynn Johnson, the Lewiston City Library director, said there have been no formal requests to remove books. She added that their story times are very well attended. 

“While we recognize that some Idaho legislators feel this may still need addressing, it does not seem to be a concern for our patrons at this time,” Johnson said. 

Further guidance on how the Community Library Network will handle the separate room for mature content will be in a press release sent next week, Ward said.