MERIDIAN, Idaho — Last week the Ada County Board of Commissioners reviewed a petition to dissolve the Meridian Library District.
RELATED | A group of local citizens petition to dissolve the Meridian Library District
The group that introduced the petition, Concerned Citizens of Meridian (CCoM), says their grievances lie in what they say is sexually explicit material that is available to children at the library.
While their petition is to dissolve the library, the group says the hope is to bring it back, but with changes. This action would require yet another petition that would require several steps, similar to the first. The big change they are seeking is to have a different board of trustees for the library.
“Once that's (the existing library district) dissolved, we can recreate the library just like we dissolved it with a petition to Ada County." Said Michael Hon, who is a member of the group.
The group says they would hope the Ada County Board of Commissioners would put in place a group of trustees that reflect, what they feel are, the community's standards.
This petition comes at the same time as many people around the country, and in Idaho, are criticizing books in school and community libraries.
Currently, House Bill 139 is in the Idaho legislature. If passed, it would restrict the availability of books and other materials deemed inappropriate.
“We’re not looking to ban books," Hon said about CCoM. "We’re looking to inform parents and give them the information to work with that, hey, there’s some stuff in here that you may not want your kids to see”
According to their press release, CCoM has a list of four "wants" for the library's Board of Trustees should a new one be appointed.
- Place inappropriate material for minors in a secure location with procedures that only allow parents to check out such materials for their own children.
- Require financial transparency by the library board.
- Bring back public discourse as indicated in the current bylaws.
- Place the library under the oversight of the Ada County Commissioners.
Opponents of the petition have brought up parental responsibility when it comes to the books in a library.
“It’s a slippery slope," said a Meridian resident named Lee, who didn't share his full name. "Books are super important. To just shut down all libraries because of something like that. Let’s control our kids, let's be good parents.”
When asked about where parental responsibility comes up, Hon said it's unrealistic for parents to monitor their kids at all times in the library.
“If a parent has to accompany a child right next to them, through this entire process, well then the library is no longer a safe space," Hon said.
Idaho News 6 reached out to the Meridian Library District for comment, but they have not respond to requests.
However, in a statement put out last week, they say the library will still offer its services to the public.
“We are disappointed that a small contingency in Ada County wants to dissolve the Meridian Library District,” said director Nick Grove in the statement. “While we wait for the determination on the next steps, our library staff will continue to provide the excellent programming and assistance Meridian has embraced for the past 99 years.”
There is still a long process before the library district could be dissolved. The Ada County Board of Commissioners will set a public hearing for sometime in the next six weeks, then will decide if the measure will make the ballot.
