'Saga' series prompts questions, concerns

SANDPOINT — For now, the Saga series will stay in circulation at the East Bonner County Library District. 

However, they could be moved to another section following a June 10 board vote to uphold a decision not to pull the books from circulation. The decision follows a May request to reconsider a decision by library staff to keep the book series in the library's collection.

Roughly a half-dozen people, accompanied by Idaho Sen. Scott Herndon, had approached the EBCL board in May asking them to either pull the series from circulation or move it to an adults-only area, calling it pornographic and damaging to children. 

"This situation causes unnecessary risk to the emotional and psychological well being of our children," said Meredith Bennett, one of the parents who called on the board to address the library's holding of the series.

While they respect the community's diversity of beliefs, another parent said a book in the series was found hidden in a public area and was easily accessible to young children. With a self-checkout system in place at the EBCL facilities, it is all too easy for inappropriate materials to end up in young hands.

"This issue goes beyond politics," the parent said. "It's about the well-being of our children. Why is it so easy for children to access and check out obscene content alone at the public library. It's our collective responsibility to shield our youth from harmful influences."

Several of the parents called on the board to end self-checkout, relocating the adult section away from the juvenile graphic novel area to behind the counter or a locked cabinet. Several parents echoed those comments at the June meeting, comparing it to library cards that allow the ability to prohibit internet access.

"It seems like it might be a way to help with all the requests for reconsideration," one parent told the board.

Described as an epic space opera, the comic series' sometimes explicit content, and depictions of same-sex relationships, violence and controversial subjects have prompted numerous challenges since its 2012 launch by writer Brian K. Vaughn and illustrator Fiona Staples.

The series was among the most 100 challenged books between 2010 and 2019, according to the American Library Association. Saga has won multiple Eisner and Hugo awards, given for best American comic books and best science fiction or fantasy works.

After hearing the concerns, library board vice chair Jeanine Asche told fellow trustees that, having been unable to attend the May meeting, she appreciated the thoughtful comments on the comic series. However, she said she researched and read the comic series and agreed with the library staff assessment that it should not be removed from the library's collection.

Saying she believed deeply in the U.S. Constitution and the First Amendment, she said it was her professional opinion that the series did not meet the definition of pornography as defined by the U.S. Supreme Court. Citing the Miller test, a three-part guideline that determines whether items are legally obscene. Under the guidelines, to be considered pornographic, items must appeal to prurient interests based on community standards, depict offensive sexual content, and lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value when considered as a whole.

"My response to this is that this series may be offensive to some in our community but it has been very popular and circulated 150 times in the last 10 years," Asche said at the June 10 board meeting. "But because House Bill 710 will complicate this. We may need to move this and many other books to another section."

Calls to move the series would go against what libraries are mandated to do — offer books and materials that serve all readers, not just one segment of the community, Asche said.

"Libraries are not allowed to serve only what the majority of what people want and find acceptable," she said. "The First Amendment guarantees all individuals the right to express their ideas without governmental interference and to read and listen to the ideas of others."

Can the series be shocking? Yes, Asche said. But the library has many other materials that some might find shocking, from nonfiction books on male medical problems and anatomy to fiction, including "Outlander," "Fifty Shades of Grey" and "Game of Thrones".

"These are just a few of the books that we have in our library that could be considered objectionable to many people," she added. "So, where does it stop?"

Having worked in libraries her entire career, Asche said she has worked in facilities where objectionable books were kept before a desk and, as a result, rarely checked out. The practice, in effect, denies people the right to read unhindered as guaranteed them by the First Amendment.

"They were essentially made inaccessible as no one wants to go through a gatekeeper or check out a book on a sensitive nature."

Saying she could not stress it enough that no one at the library, whether on the staff or the board wanted to see children harmed in any way.

"It's just not an option but I have never, in my many years as a librarian, have ever known a book to harm a child."

While she said she had stated her case for keeping the series, Asche told fellow board members that the matter was, in large part out of their hands due to the Legislature's passage of HB 710. The bill requires public and school libraries to move materials deemed harmful to children or face potential lawsuits. Under the bill, which takes effect July 1, libraries have 60 days to relocate challenged material to an adults-only section or face a lawsuit.

"Our library will follow the letter of the law and everything is now subject to scrutiny," Asche said. "I ask that those of you who have written and spoken so passionately about the Saga series to please be patient with us as we navigate these uncharted waters."

While it may take some time, she said that ultimately there would be a "satisfactory placement" of the books.