This is Read Freely Alabama’s statement on the recent developments surrounding the Autauga County Commission’s appointment of Clean Up Alabama supporters to the library board. Be sure to check out the WSFA-12 story about these appointments.
STATEMENT FROM READ FREELY ALABAMA
December 6, 2023
Read Freely Alabama is deeply disappointed by the Autauga County Commissioners' decision to appoint three more Clean Up Alabama/Moms For Liberty affiliates to the Autauga-Prattville Library Board without any transparency to their constituents.
In a Facebook post to Moms For Liberty-Madison Chapter group, CUA executive director Hannah Mann Rees said "We got three solid board members appointed by the county tonight. That means we will have 4 of the seven and have the majority!!! Waiting on two more appointments but likely these will be favorable if things go according to plan."
In text messages and phone calls with RFA members, County Commissioners Bill Tatum, Rusty Jacksland, Bill Thrailkill, and Jay Thompson said they wanted a "diverse board" and didn't want any members with any affiliations with CUA or RFA. In fact, they refused to interview family members affiliated with RFA members. However it appears that the Commission violated their promise when they appointed the following nominees, all of which have relational ties or support Clean Up Alabama: Ray Boles, Rachel Daniels and Logan Strock.
Ms. Daniels is the daughter of Marsha Woods, who has spoken in support of removing LGBTQ-affirming content from the Prattville Autauga Public Library in public hearings, aligning with Clean Up Alabama's message.
Mr. Boles is the father-in-law of former councilman Blair Gornto who threatened a Read Freely Alabama member with legal action for criticizing his anti-library stance.
Mr. Stock's Facebook page demonstrates ideology aligned with Clean Up Alabama, far from the neutral candidates that our Commission promised us.
Finally, CUA's post confirms that Doug Darr, whose appointment sparked the mass resignation of the original library board, is affiliated with the extremist anti-library group. Doug Darr's past Facebook posts amplified the CUA roundtable, during which CUA executive director Hannah Mann Rees applauded suggestions to burn books.
There are serious concerns with these new board members, which damage the integrity of the library board and the constitutionality of the library. We request that the Autauga County Commission meet face-to-face with Read Freely Alabama and other members of the public to explain the lack of diversity on the board and their deception to their constituents. Furthermore, we demand that the commission rescind all four recent appointments, which were clearly planned in advance to favor this extremist group at the expense of the constitutional rights of all Autauga County residents.
Please share our statement via X, formerly Twitter: https://twitter.com/readfreelyAL/status/1732621189250417021