Fundraiser to Obtain Records Related to Anchorage Public Library & LGBTQ Books Exceeds Goal

Book Riot, the largest independent editorial book site in North America, is taking aim at the Anchorage Public Library and the Municipality of Anchorage over the Bronson administration's assault on LGBTQ books first detailed by The Blue Alaskan.

On February 8, Book Riot writer Kelly Jensen submitted a public records request to the city of Anchorage. Requests must be sent to department heads, meaning that this request would go to the library director, which is, as I've pointed out, power-hungry Anchorage Municipal Manager Amy Demboski.

Jensen requested the following in her records request:

According to Jensen, a series of emails between herself and Demboski followed, including an initial response that no records could be quickly found.

"I would be able to continue to request, but because it would be time-consuming, there would likely be a fee assessed. Oh, and I needed to provide a list of “all staff” noted in my request, which I copy and pasted from the library’s website (seems like “all staff” wouldn’t be a hard thing to search on their end, but I support I can copy/paste). The note came back with the estimated fee: $940."

In response to the exorbitant price tag attached to Jensen's request for documents, Linda Klein, a professional librarian formerly with the Anchorage Public Library, began a GoFundMe with a goal of $1000. The funds would be used to cover fees associated with the request for information related to Municipal communications containing language or book titles related to LGBTQIA+ characters, plots, or issues.

The fundraiser has exceeded its goal, raising $1,390.

It's possible that in addition to the records The Blue Alaskan has already published, we could soon learn more about the Bronson administration's behind-the-scenes quest to censor LGBTQ material at APL.

I think it's pretty incredible that an out-of-state publication is taking on this effort and not Anchorage-based media.