Our Goals & Petition

An overview of our requests made to Board of Trustees:

The definition of being a child is that your body and mind is too young to become an adult which means that sex is not a concern they should be exposed to. They are literally unable to comprehend it because the mental and bodily structures are not developed enough. Sexual topics are not appropriate for them unless you are willing to advocate that a child can and should be able to get live on their own, consent to marriage, raise children on their own, or make medical decisions with a full understanding of consequences. 

Teenagers also cannot consent to sexual activity by the law and custom of our country so these books displaying sexual content are in fact rape of the mind. To support the library by voting yes on this levy, you would be arguing that teenagers can consent; and so should also be able to vote and drink, because that is the natural conclusion that these books lead to.

We desire to hold our library board of trustees and staff accountable to keep children safe from sexually explicit content. We are asking community members to vote “no” on the Library levy renewal with full knowledge and transparency of the on-goings at the Ida Rupp Public Library (IRPL) and its fellow branches.  

We ask that the IRPL take these actions to clean up:

1. Increased transparency by the Board of Trustees & Library Director:

   1. Explain ratings for age appropriateness in programs & materials.

   2. Provide rationale for the selection of books and programs that contain or address obscene sexual content.

2. Stop displaying books which contain or address obscene sexual content.

3. Move harmful, obscene, and sexually explicit materials from the children and juvenile sections to the adult sections of the library even if children or juveniles are the intended audience.

4. Label books with a sticker and digitally as “harmful to children and juveniles” and “gender ideology.”

5. Stop allowing children and juveniles from checking out a book labeled “harmful to children and juveniles” and attending a program of the same nature without parental consent (observe ORC 2907.31).

This request applies to any and all books in the children, young adult, juvenile, and teen’s section that contain obscene sexual content or programs offered covering the same material to our children. We respect individuals in our community and upholding the dignity of all regardless of cultural background or sexual orientation. It is not our desire to shut down the IRPL as it is an important resource and center for our community. However, we need to send a strong message related to the materials and programs available for our children.