by Tina Alvey Dale (tdale@talkbusiness.net)

U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes III ruled against Crawford County in a First Amendment lawsuit regarding the removal and relocation of books largely because of objections from citizens to LGBTQ content.

In his ruling, issued Monday (Sept. 30), Holmes said the books in question are to be returned to their original locations in the county’s libraries. (Link here for the ruling.)

Attorney Brian Meadors filed a federal complaint May 30, 2023, against book censorship actions by the Crawford County Public Library System. The Crawford County Library earlier in 2023 approved the relocation of books largely with LGBTQ content. Attorneys representing the Crawford County Library System argued that the relocation of LGBTQ books was not a First Amendment violation and instead “strikes a balance” that is “constitutionally compliant” and meets the standards of the community.

Judge rules against Crawford County Library’s ‘social section’ censorship