Rapert continues failed attempts to withhold funds from some libraries

KUAR | By Josie Lenora

Former Republican state Sen. Jason Rapert continued his efforts to withhold funds from libraries at a meeting of the Arkansas State Library Board Friday.

Rapert began his tenure on the board this year. At every meeting since then, Rapert has unsuccessfully tried to remove funding from Arkansas libraries over specific books in their collections. None of his motions at Friday's meeting received a second, meaning the group was not able to vote on them.

Rapert was especially upset about two memoirs with LGBTQ+ themes found in some Arkansas libraries: "All Boys Aren't Blue" by George M. Johnson and "Genderqueer" by Maia Kobabe. He said he had learned about the books on a website called Take Back the Classroom. The organization is funded by the conservative Capitol Resource Institute, a group working to end sex education in schools.

Rapert continues failed attempts to withhold funds from some libraries