Fairhope Public Library supporters raise money to replace funds state plans to withhold
A row of library books. Supporters of the Fairhope Public Library raised almost $40,000 to offset the funding that APLS has withheld. (Getty)
A nonprofit says it has raised enough money for Fairhope Public Library to cover state funds that the Alabama Public Library Service Board cut off last week.
Read Freely Alabama, a grassroots free speech advocacy organization that has fought restrictions on library content, said it had collected almost $39,000 from about 550 donors through Tuesday morning. Read Freely is organizing the campaign with EveryLibrary, an Illinois-based organization that promotes library funding and fights restrictions.
'We were trying to figure out what was the amount that they were pausing,' said Cheryl Corvo, a member of Read Freely Alabama and Fairhope resident. 'Then, we found out it was $42,000 that they were pausing, and how it would affect our library.'
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The Fairhope Public Library said it will have access to funding without interference from the state or any outside groups.
'We had a meeting with EveryLibrary, which is the group that has control of this particular fundraiser, and they take 10% and 90% of it comes to us,' said Randal Wright, a board member of the Fairhope Public Library.
The amount was not enough to severely debilitate the library's operations, Corvo said. But it is enough to affect 'some very vital resources that the library provided.' Corvo said the campaign should also make APLS aware of the magnitude of local support for the library.
Wright said that if the state continues to withhold money, the funds will go toward computers, books for the collection and paying for guest speakers.
If APLS releases the funding, the money can be returned to donors if they choose. Otherwise, the library may keep the money raised for other uses.
'If the money is extra money, if we continue to be funded, then the money will go towards the federal government grants that we were supposed to get that were put on hold and we don't think we are going to get them,' Wright said.
It appears the largest donation was from a couple who offered $1,000.
According to its campaign website, fundraising began Thursday evening, several hours after APLS voted almost unanimously to withhold state aid after parents complained to the board that there were inappropriate books in the teen section of the Fairhope Public Library. Fairhope library officials said last week they had removed some books from the section, following an APLS-approved process, but determined that the remaining ones — which the parents complained about — were appropriate for their age level.
The APLS board also voted on Thursday to terminate former director Nancy Pack after Chair John Wahl, who also serves as chair of the Alabama Republican Party, announced that Pack submitted her resignation effective in September.
'My commitment the whole time has been to work with the leadership of Fairhope, and get their state funding restored as soon as possible,' Wahl said. 'APLS priority has always been supporting our libraries but also making sure they put common sense policies in place to protect our children from potentially inappropriate materials.'
Wahl said he wants parents around the state to feel they can alert APLS to material they consider inappropriate in a library.
Fairhope Mayor Sherry Sullivan told members of the public during a city council meeting Monday that she had spoken with Wahl about the APLS decision.
'The funding was not cut, it is only paused,' Sullivan said at the meeting. 'When they met, the Fairhope Public Library was not on their agenda, but the (Clean Up Alabama Fairhope chapter) president spoke under public participation, a resident of Fairhope spoke, and brought to light some issues they felt the library was facing in how they categorized books.'
Sullivan said that the library had already received two quarterly payments from APLS, but the third disbursement was halted until the matter regarding the situation with the library materials could be resolved.
Sullivan said that some of the conflicts dealt with the definition of minors, which applies to anyone younger than 18 years old, including teens, which is the section of the library that generated much of the controversy.
She added she and Wahl promised to keep open lines of communication, and that APLS and the Fairhope Public Library board will work together to resolve the issue.
The two parties plan to meet Wednesday to discuss the changes to the APLS administrative code.
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