In an unfortunate mishap, the public library system in Alabama revealed that it had erroneously added a children’s picture book to a catalogue of books branded explicit due to the author’s surname – Gay. The book, “Read Me a Story, Stella,” penned by Marie-Louise Gay, was wrongly tagged as “potentially inappropriate” amidst an internal scrutiny of children’s and young adult sections in the county’s ten libraries for explicit content.
The oversight surfaced during a week that saw an influx of criticism from within the library network and the local populace. Speaking on the incident, Cindy Hewitt, the Executive Director of the library, elaborated that an automated keyword search flagged the title after picking up the word “gay,” a fact which was ultimately found irrelevant to the book’s content. Articulating that the assessment was not designed to prohibit or censor literature shedding light on topics such as LGBTQ+ issues, racism, or gender identity, she added that the review was an effort aimed at protecting existing library resources from possible bans.
Further, Hewitt emphasized that they had initiated an extensive review to identify any potential threats to their collection in the wake of sweeping efforts nationwide to ban books. “Our intention was to safeguard our title trove, ensuring that it remains intact. We aimed to act in a protective rather than prohibitive manner,” Hewitt stated.
The review was conducted using a list supplied by Clean Up Alabama, an organization striving to secure children’s innocence from literature that might confuse them about sexuality or expose them to unsuitable material. Notably, “Read Me a Story, Stella,” was not included in the organization’s own list and, in Hewitt’s words, contained no sexually explicit content.
Part of a beloved children’s series, the flagged book revolves around a girl named Stella, who fosters the love for reading in her younger brother, Sam. Groundwood Books, the book’s publisher, released a statement expressing amusement over the situation, labeling it “laughable” that the book’s author’s last name led to its flagging. Yet, they stressed that it should not be allowed to overshadow the serious issue at large, that of censorship.
“Whether it’s one book or another, the core issue here is that censorship conveys a message to our young readers that certain concepts or individuals aren’t deserving of acknowledgement or discussion,” they said.
In a direct response to Governor Kay Ivey’s mandate requiring a policy change in book categorization for age-appropriateness to obtain state funding, Hewitt acknowledged that Alabama seemed to be gearings towards more censorship. However, she reassured that “Read Me a Story, Stella,” remains available in all libraries within the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library system due to its absolute appropriateness.
