Montgomery County Library Discrimination Settlement Shows Fight for Access

"Unfortunately, I don't think with the group of members on commissioners court right now, that it'll make them think twice before they fire anybody," Young said. "They're still doing exactly what they were doing when I was there: They're censoring books. They're moving books to high shelves. ... They are 100% censoring what's in the public library."

At the time of Young's firing, County Judge Mark Keough was put in charge of the library system in an acting capacity. He told Community Impact in a statement at the time that the library system was “vital” and he wanted a director who “shares the values of the community and respects the direction of commissioners court.”

In July 2023, commissioners for the county north of Houston instructed Young and the public library system to add more conservative-themed books to the shelves while also putting an age restriction on materials that could be perceived as sexually explicit.

Then, in March 2024, the county created a citizen-led book review board. However, just a few months after its creation, county commissioners were already beginning to reconsider the review board after worries arose regarding whether non-Montgomery County residents could submit a book for review.

In October 2024, the review board received backlash after it mistakenly categorized a historical book as fiction.

During the January 2025 meeting in which commissioners voted to fire Young, several community members spoke in favor of Young and called on commissioners not to terminate her. While one speaker voiced concerns about Young's decisions regarding some of the library's material, the speaker did not call for her to be terminated.

Pushback against the book policies from constituents has died down since her firing, Young said.

"Nobody's paying a lot of attention to what's going on, and I think that's the case all over the country, and that's why counties and cities are still firing public librarians," she said. "People don't think it’s happening around them, I guess, is the problem. There's not enough attention brought to what's going on."

According to PEN America, a national nonprofit that advocates for literature and human rights, nearly 6,900 books were banned during the 2024-25 school year by 87 public school districts across 23 states.

Young said she wouldn't change any of the decisions she made as Montgomery County’s library director, adding that providing material for everybody is part of a librarian’s job.

"This was not a fun process, but I would do it again," she said. "I would absolutely fight for what is right and make sure that everybody had books to represent them. That is my advice [to other librarians,] is to keep fighting."

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