FINAL Board Vote…WE DID IT!!!

What a journey!

Thirteen months ago the ex director told myself and four others she had no problems bringing in sexually explicit material.Seven days later she joined the American Library Association and then immediately started working on updating the policy that guides her. Today I am happy to announce the library Board gave in and formed a committee of citizens to update the Collection policy to reflect the community’s interests and concerns. I am happy to announce the committee is done with their recommendations and now the draft heads to the Board for final approval (lawyer already approved). I would like to invite everyone to this historical event as a witness. I have attached a copy of all the forms they will be voting on. My hope is the Board will not edit it. As far as I know we are the only library across the nation that has a Collection Policy that spells out:

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“Materials for minors under the age of eighteen (18) that violate Idaho Obscene Materials Codes for Minors (18-1513, 18-1514, and 18-1515) will be excluded from the children’s, young people, and young adult collections.

Materials which come within the Supreme Court of the United States’ definition of obscenity (see below) will be excluded from the entire library.

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Supreme Court definition of obscenity: The average person, applying contemporary

community standards, must find that the work, taken as a whole, appeals to prurient

interest; the work depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct or

excretory functions specifically defined by applicable state law; and the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.”

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