Rutherford Co. Schools, board member criticized for lack of transparency after 18 books pulled from school libraries

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Daphne Gamble is a sophomore attending high school in Rutherford County who volunteers at a local library and plans on studying library science in college before becoming a librarian herself.

“It’s something I think I could make a career of and really enjoy,” Gamble said.

Gamble is also an avid reader who says she has read too many books to pick a favorite, but right now the books she thinks of the most are the ones getting removed from library shelves in Rutherford County Schools because a group of parents believe they are too sexually charged for students.

“I think maybe it’s well intentioned, but I think they’re taking the books out of context,” says Gamble. “And I don’t think the people objecting have read the books in whole, maybe they’ve read parts.”

According to RCS, 18 books were removed from district school libraries in late February and early March. WSMV4 Investigates has learned the titles of 18 pulled books include: We Are the Ants; Kingdom of Ash; People Kill People; Fallout; Identical; Crank; The Lovely Bones; Like A Love Story; Life is Funny; A Court of Frost; A Court of Mist and Fury, A Court of Silver Flames; A Court of Thorns and Roses; A Court of Wings and Ruin, Traffick; and Impulse.

In 2023, the Rutherford County Board of Education set up a district policy establishing an 11-member Library Review Committee, compromised of principals, librarians, teachers, and a parent, to take complaints lodged by parents who find a book inappropriate for school aged children and outside the school district’s educational mission.

But Keri Lambert, an RCS parent who is also with a group called the Rutherford County Library Alliance, learned that the books removed from RCS school libraries were not going through the Library Review Committee.

“It’s basically done in secret. Somebody within our school district just decided that these books have to go, and they have to go immediately,” Lambert said. “It’s absolutely censorship, and the books being removed tend to have something to do with the LGTBQ-plus community.”

Lambert says RCLA members learned about the books when two emails got leaked to them that RCS Director of Schools James Sullivan sent to librarians and principals on Feb. 21 and March 1 saying the 18 books had to be removed “immediately.”

Lambert says that prompted RCLA members to start emailing RCS leadership and showing up at School Board meetings to learn who was objecting to the books, why the review process was not followed, and who made the determination the books were obscene.

“They won’t talk to us about it,” Lambert said. “We thought there would be a review committee, so any books that were being challenged would go through the committee, but it’s being done in secret.”

“I spoke at a school board meeting, asked why books were being removed, and it was crickets” Lambert said.

WSMV4 Investigates filed a public records request uncovering two emails that school board member Caleb Tidwell sent to Sullivan.

In one email, Tidwell identifies the 18 books that have been removed and described them as “sexually explicit” saying they need “to be removed from libraries immediately.”

WMSV4 investigates reached out to Tidwell, and at first he declined our request for an interview, but in an email said the list of books he got removed came to him from individuals who have expressed concerns but feared retaliation from the media and individuals in the district.

So, WSMV4 Investigates attended the most recent RCS Board Meeting and asked Tidwell if his standing in for parents who want to remain anonymous lacks transparency and violates district policy. Tidwell said no.

“Absolutely not,” said Tidwell. “I think sometimes there can be fear of retaliation, such as doing stuff like this, whereas I don’t really hold that same fear. So, I’m their voice, and if they come to me, any parent and they have an issue like this, I will gladly stand in the gap for them.”

WSMV4 Investigates also spoke with Sullivan, who said the lists of books that Tidwell brought up were deemed obscene by the district, so in conjunction with state law and board policy, they books had to be removed immediately and the limits of the Review Committee did not apply.

“Ultimately anybody can file a complaint as far as the obscenity rule goes,” said Sullivan.

WSMV4 investigates asked Sullivan if allowing a school board member to step in for anonymous parents and object to an unlimited number of books.

“Any person can, board member, community member any person can, and it just so happens that’s where I’m getting them from right now,” said Sullivan.

That says that lack of transparency horrifies her, and she fears if it continues, hundreds of books will disappear from RCS school libraries without any discussion and no explanation.

“It’s terrifying, and if you don’t think it’s terrifying, you’re not paying attention,” Lambert said. “And I think at this point we just need to keep yelling from the rooftops, look what’s happening.”

Lambert says at this point RCLA must consider the only way to stop the book removals from continuing and get the pulled books back is to sue the district under the First Amendment.

“I am neither Republican nor Democrat. I do not believe in party politics. I don’t think it matters what side you’re on in politics,” said Lambert. “This is an American problem, and we need to defend the American constitution.”