Police Remind Students Of 'No Loitering' Policy At Claremore Library

A “No Loitering” policy at the Will Rogers Library in Claremore is bringing in mixed reactions from parents online.

Some feel it's exclusionary, while others believe it's necessary for safety.

A recent post to social media by the library has some people concerned kids won't get to hang out like they used to.

“We are not trying to keep people out of a public building, but what we are trying to do is keep our kids safe. And even though it is a public building, there are still rules, public-private, there are still rules,” said Chief Steve Cox, Claremore Police.

The letter from the library was posted to social media and shared dozens of times. It says:

Chief of Police, Steve Cox, says the policy is not new. The library wanted to remind students as they head back to school.

“Over time, we started having fights. We had some inappropriate stuff between kids, a lot of harassment, stuff like this. So this actual policy is really nothing new, in the sense of, we've been enforcing this for, I think, the last three years,” said Cox.

We asked a mom, Danielle Keough, about the policy while she was checking out books with her son.

“You know if you're kids are doing the right thing, what they're supposed to be doing at a library then there shouldn't be a problem but if they're up here raising chaos, making trouble. Go somewhere else and do that, this is a library,” said Keough.

The Executive Director of the Will Rogers Library, Sherry Beach, says they want kids to come to the library. There's even a dedicated room for them to hang out in after school. they can eat snacks, hang out with their friends and play games.

“And it is a safe space. It is a great place. It's a great thing for our community, and we want people to go there and enjoy it,” said Cox.

Library Staff and police hope this policy reminder deters students from making the library an unsafe space for others.