Resisting the pleas of more than 50 residents attending its September 21 meeting, the board of the Alexandrian Public Library, located in Mount Vernon, Indiana, took no action on a request to restrict access to The R. Crumb Coffee Table Art Book, a collection of works by the underground comics artist.
The Evansville Courier and Press reported September 22 that most trustees declined to respond to the plea to have the book restricted from minors or removed from circulation altogether. Board President Dennis Clark said a petition signed by 250 people opposed to the book will be forwarded to the board’s attorney. The newspaper said that four of the six people speaking at the meeting called for the book’s removal.
Pamela Davidson, whose 11-year-old daughter checked out the book last spring, spearheaded the petition drive. Noting that the board had also ignored her earlier request to remove the book, she said, “It’s time for the Alexandrian Public Library to start working for the community and not the American Library Association.”
Posted September 27, 1999.