'Let's Talk About' those LAB emails released amid concerns over the Open Meetings Act
The Library Advisory Board (LAB) has published a collection of emails that shed light on discussions among its board members regarding a conservative-led effort to censor the book 'Let's Talk About It' at the Anchorage Public Library. The emails were made public after lawyers with the city's municipal attorney's office raised eyebrows over concerns related to the Open Meetings Act as explained by Chair Cristy Willer during yesterday's LAB meeting. ⬇️
The emails kick off with board member Doug Weimann emailing LAB's members on February 15, 2023, after a 'concerned parent,' now identified as Mayor Bronson's former chief of staff Sami Graham, sent him a photograph of a cartoon anus and scrotum taken from the book 'Let's Talk About It.'
Weimann wrote in his email that it was a "very uncomfortable" message for him to have received and asked whether it was possible to review the library's policies for selecting and displaying books.
In response, LAB Chair Christy Willer explained to Weimann that there was indeed an approved process and that APL Director, Virginia McClure would go over the policy with LAB the following month. Willer encouraged Weimann to ask his "concerned parent" to attend the March meeting armed with any questions they might have.
"Virginia also shared that this book, "Let's Talk About It," is owned and circulated by several public libraries in Alaska and is an important resource for teens who need accurate, non-judgmental, and non-biased information about sex," Willer wrote.
Then, in a March 10, 2023, email previously obtained via records request by The Blue Alaskan, Weimann informed LAB that he had huddled with his "concerned parent" (Graham) and concluded that the book was inaccurate, judgmental, and biased.
"As a LAB member, I have serious concerns about who may have had access to this graphic novel, specifically under-aged patrons," Weimann wrote, seemingly unaware that public libraries don't police what patrons are reading or what they are checking out on their library cards.
Weimann claimed in his email that "many parents" would consider the book to be pornographic and that following the book's advice would place children at risk from online predators. He requested 'Let's Talk About It' be referred to the municipal attorney for "legal review" and expressed concern the library might be breaking laws and potentially face "liability risks."
Weimann has repeatedly insisted that he has never wanted to ban 'Let's Talk About It' even after claiming several times that he believed the book violated state and municipal laws related to performances and exhibitions harmful to minors.
A March 15th LAB meeting was marred by confusion when Weimann successfully lobbied LAB's conservative members, including First Lady Deborah Bronson, to bypass the library's request for reconsideration policy and send the book to municipal attorney Anne Helzer for legal review—a request she later denied.
Weimann's power move referring the book to Helzer sparked outrage and alarm among some library patrons who were concerned that Mayor Bronson's loyalists on the board were engaging in a politically motivated operation intended to curb their reading rights.
By the time LAB's April meeting rolled around, McClure revealed that the library had received an official challenge to 'Let's Talk About It,' and that an Ad Hoc Review Committee of three librarians was convened to consider the censorship request. The committee found that while not to everyone’s taste, the book is appropriate for ages 14-18, depending on a teen’s maturity.
During the same meeting, McClure stated she was in the process of reviewing an appeal of the Ad Hoc Review Committee's findings.
On April 22nd, Weimann sent an email to LAB chair Cristy Willer. In it, he took McClure to task for making Graham's request for reconsideration public by including it in that month's board packet even though he had verbally approved of the move and thanked McClure for her willingness to do so—just listen for yourself! ⬇️
Apparently, and rather incredibly, even after redacting personal information included in the form (except Graham's name), Weimann believes McClure violated Graham's privacy.
As an aside, Weimann also falsely claimed in his email that Graham's request for reconsideration form had been given to the "far left social media page" The Blue Alaskan...because, as we all know, being a Democrat in Alaska means you're "far-left" of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and spend time in the basement of your pizza restaurant snorting lines of dehydrated baby dust left over from the children you cannibalized earlier in the week.
Note: I located Sami Graham's reconsideration request in the same place everyone else did—in the board packet on the Anchorage Public Library's website.
Anyway, Willer responded, reminding Weimann that it seemed clear he had authorized sharing the form publicly.
In a separate email, Weimann criticized McClure for suggesting Graham and others had advocated for the book to be banned from library shelves. He says McClure's assertion is false, but let's dissect his claim.
According to APL's Ad Hoc Review Committee, the book was deemed suitable for ages 14-18, contingent on the maturity level of individual teens. However, in her reconsideration request, Graham asked for the book's complete removal (ban) from the youth collection, advocating for it to be inaccessible to patrons under the age of 16.
This, my friends, is a prime example of what a censorship attempt looks like.
In the same email, Weimann slyly attempted to call into question McClure’s character and integrity, suggesting to his counterparts on the board that if they believed any of her statements to be untruthful, they should raise their concerns with the Bronson administration.
"Virginia may want to avoid making accusations or assumptions without evidence," he wrote of the highly qualified and respected library director.
Weimann said in his email that it was important to express his concerns in a "respectful and professional manner," but did nothing of the sort at last month's LAB meeting. He was captured on video lobbing accusations at McClure after the Anchorage Assembly amended an ordinance that clarified the Library Advisory Board's role was purely…wait for it…advisory, and thus did not have the power nor authority to ban or censor library books.
But in the end, after months of fear-mongering over a children's book, sanity prevailed with 'Let's Talk About It' remaining on the library shelves and Anchoragite's retaining their right to read—leaving Mayor Bronson's allies on the board to grouse about their failed efforts to inject lower 48 culture wars and divisive politics into a beloved institution designed to be free from such influence.
