Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Library Content topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident urges review after Temple Terrace library Pride post and book recommendations draw complaint
Summary
A resident told the Temple Terrace City Council she believes recent library social-media posts and recommended books included sexually explicit content involving minors, asked why a Pride video was removed and proposed a community advisory committee to review library recommendations.
A Temple Terrace resident told the City Council on June 3 that she was concerned about Pride Month social-media content and book recommendations posted by the Temple Terrace Public Library and asked the city to explain why a Pride video was later removed.
Alyssa Hines, a 13-year resident, said the library shared book recommendations for Pride Month that she believes included “explicit scenes involving minors” and said some of the titles would not be allowed in jails and prisons, as she understood it. “While I appreciate the library’s commitment to diversity, I believe we can promote inclusivity in ways that align with our shared goal of protecting children,” Hines told the council.
Hines said she brought sample pages and letters she said were recently sent by the state education commissioner and the state attorney general to school districts about unlawful access to certain books. She also said she believes Florida statute 1111223, “subsection 1 and 2,” prohibits deleting social-media communications, and asked for the city’s explanation of why the Pride video was removed a day after posting.
Hines recommended forming a community advisory committee to review library recommendations before they are publicized and offered to serve if the council forms such a group. Council members did not respond with a staff explanation or a formal action during the meeting; no library staff member presented a statement at the council dais that evening.
Why this matters: public libraries are city services that shape what is presented to families and residents; questions about content, legal obligations for social-media records and the city’s process for posting or removing material were raised in a public comment and sent to staff for follow-up.
Council and staff next steps were not recorded on the record that night. Hines said she had given the council copies of the sample pages and related correspondence; she asked the city to create clear content-guideline procedures that prioritize age-appropriate material for library recommendations.
The council meeting record does not include a staff response or a formal vote on Hines’s request. The city clerk’s office will retain the public-comment exhibits Hines said she provided to the clerk.
