Fairhope Mayor Sherry Sullivan was at the Fairhope Public Library this morning, along with a few library staff members, to give an update on the library after the Alabama Public Library Services (APLS) voted to withhold state funding over material deemed “inappropriate.”

Sullivan revealed that she, along with library board members and an attorney, had a conference call with APLS Chairman John Wahl to get clarification on what the state considers a minor as well as “sexually explicit” content. One of the clarifications they received was that the state considers anyone under the age of 18 to be a minor, meaning that even books that are shelved within the teen section of the library could be in violation of APLS code if it meets their criteria of “sexually explicit.”

Sullivan also noted that there are current policies in place at the library that allow parents to come in and fill out a form that chooses what level of access their children can have to various sections and materials, saying that it’s important that parents can have that ability, stating that this is approved by APLS. Fairhope Library Director Rob Gourlay previously said that 51% of parents have approved to give their children full access to the youth and adult sections with no restrictions.

Sullivan thanked everyone who came out to Monday night’s city council meeting, where the room was filled with locals who expressed their concerns with the funding pause, while also thanking those who donated to the fundraiser to help replenish the potentially lost $40,000 from the state, noting how the situation has been receiving national attention.

The City of Fairhope gives roughly $900,000 to the Fairhope Public Library annually. As for state funding, the library has already received two of its four quarterly payments. However, the next cycle, slated for June, won’t be given until the library has met APLS policies on their book placement

“There’s a lot of passion about this topic, obviously,” Sullivan said. “It’s not only here in Fairhope; it’s across the country, and we are aware of that, and I really want to thank everyone who donated. Obviously, the funds are important to the library, but the most important thing is following those APLS guidelines to be able to maintain that relationship with the county library system."

Sullivan says the library board will have to decide on whether they will re-review books that have already been reviewed for potential violations of APLS guidelines or to move the books to the library’s adult section, saying that five books have already been moved from the teen section to the adult section in the past few months. While stating they will follow the rules set by APLS, Sullivan also said she feels some of these books are important for teens to read.

“These are award-winning books. They are books on summer reading programs,” Sullivan said. “We feel like they’re appropriate for teenagers. They may not be appropriate for all teenagers, and we all know if you have children [ages 13-17], there’s a lot of difference in a child. Maybe it’s not good for a [13- to 17-year-old] but it’s OK for a 17-year-old. That’s the age range we have in our book category, but again, APLS defines that differently.”

While their discussion with Wahl was over the phone, Sullivan said she would be happy for him or a representative from APLS to come to Fairhope to check the library out if they feel something has been misrepresented on book shelves.

“We invite them at any time to come down,” Sullivan said. “We invite anybody to come to our library and see how wonderful it is.”

Last week, APLS voted to withhold state funding from the Fairhope Public Library. Wahl, who also serves as the chair of the Alabama Republican Party, said the library violated their policies and guidelines to protect children from inappropriate and sexually explicit material by “ignoring” parents’ complaints over select books.

The decision came after complaints were heard during an APLS meeting, including those from the group Moms For Liberty, with many of the 35 books featuring elements of sexual education, sexual abuse, and mental health. The sudden potential loss of state funding came as a surprise to locals, city leaders and library staff members.

Elizabeth Williams, organizer for the Read Freely Alabama chapter of Baldwin County, cited how important the Fairhope Public Library is to the local community and criticized APSL guidelines as being too vague and subjective.

“If the book is written for a teenage audience and it is not obscene, then I think it belongs in the teen section,” Williams said. “I don’t know if compromising on the First Amendment is the compromise that we want to make. I don’t see that as a compromise. That’s healthy for Fairhope and for our democracy.”