Federal court hears oral arguments in appeal of Arkansas’ library obscenity law; Arkansas Advocate, June 11, 2026

TESS VRBIN, Arkansas Advocate; Federal court hears oral arguments in appeal of Arkansas’ library obscenity law

"A federal appeals court heard arguments Thursday to uphold the injunction of a 2023 Arkansas law governing challenges to library content, while Arkansas’ solicitor general said the plaintiffs’ allegations were “too speculative.”

The three-judge panel from the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis will rule on whether two sections of Act 372 of 2023 can go into effect. A district judge blocked the provisions in 2024, and the state appealed the ruling in 2025.

The two challenged sections would create criminal liability for librarians who distribute content that some consider “obscene” or “harmful to minors,” and give city and county governing bodies the final say over library content.

The 18 plaintiffs in the case include libraries, bookstores, advocacy groups and individual library patrons. The defendants are Arkansas’ 28 prosecuting attorneys, Crawford County and its county judge, Chris Keith.

Crawford County lost another federal lawsuit in 2024 after three parents claimed the county library violated the First Amendment by moving LGBTQ+ children’s books into separate “social sections” that only adults could access."

Arkansas librarians meet for annual conference amid censorship pressures; Arkansas Advocate, October 12, 2023

  TESS VRBIN, Arkansas Advocate; Arkansas librarians meet for annual conference amid censorship pressures

"Library administrators and staff from across Arkansas are gathering in Hot Springs this weekend for an annual conference, at a time when librarians in some parts of the state are under pressure to remove or relocate books pertaining to controversial subjects.

The Arkansas Library Association (ArLA), a chapter of the American Library Association, is a statewide organization that advocates for public libraries and promotes professional development for librarians. Both individuals and institutions in the library profession can be members of ArLA, according to its bylaws.

The organization is one of 18 plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit against the state over Act 372 of 2023, a law that would alter libraries’ material reconsideration processes and create criminal liability for librarians who distribute content that some consider “obscene” or “harmful to minors.” In July, a federal judge temporarily blocked the portions of the law that would have applied to public libraries, three days before the law was supposed to go into effect.

Supporters of Act 372 and the relocation or removal of certain library content have said no one under 18 should have access to content regarding sexual activity or LGBTQ+ topics.

The ArLA conference schedule includes discussions about the history of censorship in libraries, including attacks on LGBTQ+ subject matter.

The conference as a whole will not focus on these issues, but they have had an impact on librarians’ morale across the state, said Carol Coffey, the ArLA president and the Patron Experience and Library Analytics Coordinator for the Central Arkansas Library System."