Library director in Fremont rejects request by local grandmother to ban sex ed book

FREMONT — A children's sex education book will remain in the Keene Memorial Library for now after library director Laura England-Biggs rejected a request from a local grandmother to ban the book.

“Sex is a Funny Word” won its stay after Sandra Murray's attempt to have the book removed.

England-Biggs made the decision Jan. 16, but had declined to reveal her determination on the advice of city attorneys, she said. 

The city turned over the letter of determination to the Fremont Tribune after a public records request.

On Jan. 17, England-Biggs sent a two-page letter to Murray, the local grandmother who complained about the presence of the book at the city library during a Dec. 27 Fremont City Council meeting.

Within days, Murray, who owns downtown clothing store Fia + Belle, filed an official complaint seeking the book’s removal from Keene Memorial Library.

England-Biggs disagreed and said so in her written decision.

“Having looked at professional reviews and taken the time to read ‘Sex is a Funny Word’ several times, it is my finding that this title is appropriate for inclusion in our collection and remain on shelves,” England-Biggs wrote to Murray.

As a concession, the book "has been relocated from the children’s nonfiction section to the adult nonfiction section," England-Biggs wrote, adding that Fremont's children’s librarian has also ordered materials on abstinence, as Murray suggested. 

Besides “Sex is a Funny Word,” Murray and her daughter also objected to the presence of four LGBTQ+-themed books in the library, although she did not file a complaint seeking the removal of those books.

In subsequent interviews, Murray said she and others have discovered a total of 86 LGBTQ+-themed books in the library that she does not believe should be available.

Murray said she is disappointed in the decision to keep “Sex is a Funny Word” and plans to appeal England-Biggs’ decision to the city library advisory board.

“I expected that to be the decision," Murray said. "I am going to appeal it. I am not censoring anyone. If anyone wants these books, they can go online or buy them somewhere else. That is an adult subject. I just don’t think the library should sexualize kids.

“Also, I am not trying to be hateful to the LGBTQ community. I just feel that it is an adult issue. The library wants to sexualize children, not the LGBTQ community. I do not hate the LGBTQ community, I just don’t think (the books) should be in the library.”

England-Biggs cited four professional literary reviews of “Sex is a Funny Word” before making her decision.

The book has been available at the library since 2019, England-Biggs said. It is considered a frank approach to sex education and body issues for children ages 8 to 10 years old as well as parents and caregivers, according to its description on Amazon.com.

It has been checked out for use either in the library or for take-home use nine times.

The book has several dozen pages of graphic and explicit cartoon drawings of both male and female genitalia. 

In addition to those images, there are descriptions and explanations of masturbation and how children can touch their genitals, breasts and anuses to make them feel “warm and tingly.”

On Dec. 27, Murray showed council members a packet of photocopied pages from the book with many of the images she felt were inappropriate.

“I’d like to address sexually explicit books that are in the Fremont Public Library. You will find graphic descriptions of explicit sex acts as well as pictures of erect adult penises and other genitalia,” Murray said. “We have to remove these books from our public library.”

Following her complaints, city leaders — including Mayor Joey Spellerberg, City Administrator Jody Sanders and Keene Memorial Library Board President Linda McClain — met with England-Biggs the next day and the four came to a mutual decision to move the book, and six other common sex education books, from the children’s section to the adult section of the library.

Lincoln City Libraries' most popular books of 2022

1. “The Lincoln Highway” by Amor Towles

2. “Sparks Like Stars” by Nadia Hashimi

3. “Sparring Partners” by John Grisham

4. “The 6:20 Man” by David Baldacci

5. “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens

6. “Run, Rose, Run” by Dolly Parton and James Patterson

7. “The Hotel Nantucket” by Elin Hilderbrand

8. “Dream Town” by David Baldacci

9. “Shattered” by James Patterson

10. “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days” by Jeff Kinney

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