‘Lots of Disgust’: Lincoln Library Faces Backlash Over Pride Push

by John Gage

(Picture credits Lewis Thune)

LINCOLN – Lincoln City Libraries (LCL) is facing backlash following a display of Pride books the library put out near the entrance of its Gere Branch Library. A video taken by Bill Jarrett, a former chief deputy for the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, went viral over the weekend, garnering over 300,000 views on Twitter and Facebook.

Jarrett said he was outraged that the “first thing” his grandchildren saw when they walked into the library was books pushing LGBTQ+ content for children. “Is this really what we should be advertising for kids?” he asked in the video.

“Totally disgusting,” he said, noting that any children wanting to access kids’ books had to walk by the display. Comments in the video posted by the conservative activist account, Libs of TikTok, show hundreds of users expressing similar views.

A perusal of the book titles by The Plains Sentinel shows about half a dozen of the books on display were aimed at younger kids, including: “Not He or She I’m Me, a book about a non-binary kid; “Are You a Friend of Dorothy?,” a book introducing kids to gay history and culture; “It Feels Good to be Yourself,” a book meant to introduce the concept of gender identity to four-year-olds, “A Tale of Two Daddies” and “Stella Brings the Family” both of which introduce the concept of gay parents to children as young as 3.

Of eight library branches in Lincoln, only the Gere and the Eiseley Branch Libraries contained Pride displays. The South Branch Library also contains a permanent mural that includes a “trans-affirming” squirrel.

Jarrett told The Plains Sentinel that he wanted to know if the library was willing to also host a “Catholic Schools Week” or put on a Christian display of books by the children’s section, if they were willing to push Pride Month.

One parent similarly posted on Facebook that he believed the display showed ideological bias by the library. “This transgender book display is front & center when you walk in the Gere branch library here in Lincoln. Not exactly what I would want my young child to see right when they walk in. Imagine the outrage if it was a stack of bibles,” he said.

Councilman Tom Duden, in an interview with The Plains Sentinel, said he had been hearing from parents and grandparents who had “lots of disgust” over the book display.

Duden, who normally holds his monthly town hall meetings at the Gere Branch Library, said he was boycotting the venue in the future out of principle.

“As a result of this, I’m moving them. I’m not going to be there anymore,” he said. “I can’t support that facility with what just happened.”

Duden said he has raised concerns over books with the library in the past, including one book that appears to be sympathetic to incest, pedophilia, and sexual assault. The councilman said his main concern is that sensitive material should not be available to young children without the express permission of one of their parents.

“I am not asking for the books to be banned from Lincoln’s city libraries, just that they be moved to a different section within the library. Please inform me what measures were taken before choosing to place this book in the youth section of Lincoln Libraries,” Duden said in an email to the director of LCL.

His letter also inquired whether the library system considers whether certain books run afoul of criminal statues. Duden said his concerns and letter have so far been ignored by the library system, but that he plans to file another complaint with the city.

LCL Uses National Standard

The Lincoln library system is part of the American Library Association (ALA), which pushes both “banned books” as well as ensures that minors have access to all books in a library. The ALA publishes what they refer to as a “Library Bill of Rights,” and one of the articles in this document explicitly states that “a person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.”

In an article where the ALA explains what this “right” means, the organization says that it would be a violation of a child’s library “rights” to not let “minors check out certain items or making comments about whether materials are appropriate based on assumed age or maturity.” Additionally, the organization instructs librarians to allow minors access to library cards regardless if parents or guardians give the child permission.

The Lincoln library system states that it adheres to ALA’s Library Bill of Rights.

The organization releases an annual list of books they tout as “most challenged books” that “pressure groups” seek to ban. “Book bans were not sparked by concerned parents, and they were not the result of local grassroots efforts,” Sarah Lamdan, executive director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, said in a statement. “They were part of a well-funded, politically-driven campaign to suppress the stories and lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals and communities.”

A spokesperson for the city of Lincoln, which handles all media requests for the library, said they would check to see if there were any complaints about the book display. They did not return comment at time of publication.

— John Gage is the executive editor of The Plains Sentinel.