Faithwire
  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • SCOTUS
  • Life
  • Religious Liberty
  • News
  • Politics
  • Faith
  • Opinion

Tennessee Library Director Fired After Allegedly Trying to Sabotage Kirk Cameron Event

AP Photo/David Zalubowski
AP Photo/David Zalubowski
Share Tweet
By Tré Goins-Phillips
Editor

March 17, 2023

The board of a library in northern Tennessee voted this week to fire the director of its Hendersonville library after he allegedly tried to sabotage a February event with Christian author and actor Kirk Cameron.

In a 4-3 vote, the members of the Sumner County Library Board booted Allan Morales, according to Sumner County Mayor John Isbell, who confirmed the ouster was “related to the Kirk Cameron event.”

Listen to the latest episode of CBN’s Quick Start podcast 👇

The event, slated for Feb. 25, included Cameron as well as former University of Kentucky women’s swimmer Riley Gaines and Missy Robertson of “Duck Dynasty” fame and was in conjunction with Brave Books, which sponsored the event, The Tennessean reported.

Robertson, presumably talking about Morales, said the unnamed man associated with the library was initially enthusiastic about the event but soon thereafter turned on the “Growing Pains” star after he learned of the celebrity’s Christian and conservative bonafides.

The former “Duck Dynasty” star made the comments last week on the “Unashamed with Phil & Jase Robertson” podcast.

“He started a campaign in the community to shut [the event] down without officially canceling it, because then he knew that it wouldn’t be good for their library,” Robertson said, seemingly referring to Morales.

According to The Tennessean, Gaines recalled feeling tension build when Cameron felt Morales was being too loud while he was trying to film a promotional video before the library was open to the public for the event. Gaines, for her part, said she was unaware if the disruption was intentional.

The former athlete, though, did become frustrated with other library employees, whom she believed were intentionally making loud noises during the filming session. Recalling the same incident, Robertson said staff members were banging books, kicking cabinets, and playing loud music.

Nevertheless, the event still moved forward as scheduled and was well-attended. But that didn’t stop the board from outing Morales as the director of the library.

Morales’ sister, Marilyn Kleist, said the decision to fire her brother “was not right.”

“That is shocking, and it’s sad, and it has literally divided a community,” she said. “It has, you know, branded the library team in ways that only told one side of the story.”

For his part, Morales seemed concerned with how big the Feb. 25 event was becoming in the days leading up to it. In an email dated Feb. 22, he explained to a representative of Brave Books, “Our invitation was sincere to read a book during our story time. We guard that time because it is for small children and not adults. We work hard at not promoting any agendas left or right.”

In the aftermath of his ouster, however, he is hoping to move on.

“I just have chosen not to say anything,” he told The Tennessean. “I don’t want to add to all this. I’m hoping now that they have fired me that the community can move on. There’s not much of a point to giving my side. At end of the day I don’t hate anybody.”

Gaines, it should be noted, took issue with the way the whole ordeal unfolded — including Morales’ firing.

“It’s not an accurate representation of Hendersonville, Gallatin, or Sumner County,” explained Gaines, a resident of Sumner County. “I hate that it resulted in termination. I don’t know if it was politically driven. There were bomb threats [reported], a lot of things going on [leading up to the event]. I don’t know if it is an accurate representation of him.”

***As the number of voices facing big-tech censorship continues to grow, please sign up for Faithwire’s daily newsletter and download the CBN News app, developed by our parent company, to stay up-to-date with the latest news from a distinctly Christian perspective.***

Latest

  • Faith

    ‘Thank God He Was There’: Off-Duty Firefighter Says It Was the Lord Who Led Him to Save Deputy Hurt in Crash

  • News

    ‘Kind of a Miracle’: Storm Chaser Rescues Family After Tornado, Pledges to Help Rebuild Home After Terrifying Ordeal

  • News

    Amid ‘Hidden Dangers That Lurk’ in Culture, Christian Video Games Could Offer Parents a Powerful Solution

  • News

    All-American Swimmer Blasts ESPN for Promoting Transgender Athlete in ‘Celebrating Women’s History Month’

  • News

    ‘Dear Jesus, Please Help Them’: Meteorologist Credited With Saving Lives After Viral, On-Air Prayer to God as Deadly Tornado Hit


Sponsored
Sponsored

Newsletter
Signup

Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • ‘Thank God He Was There’: Off-Duty Firefighter Says It Was the Lord Who Led Him to Save Deputy Hurt in Crash
  • ‘Kind of a Miracle’: Storm Chaser Rescues Family After Tornado, Pledges to Help Rebuild Home After Terrifying Ordeal
  • Amid ‘Hidden Dangers That Lurk’ in Culture, Christian Video Games Could Offer Parents a Powerful Solution
  • All-American Swimmer Blasts ESPN for Promoting Transgender Athlete in ‘Celebrating Women’s History Month’
  • ‘Dear Jesus, Please Help Them’: Meteorologist Credited With Saving Lives After Viral, On-Air Prayer to God as Deadly Tornado Hit

Archives

  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016

Categories

  • Christian Persecution
  • Coronavirus
  • culture
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Faith
  • Faith
  • Family
  • George Floyd
  • Go!
  • Israel
  • Life
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • Media
  • Men
  • Mission Haiti
  • News
  • News
  • Opinion
  • P.O.V
  • Politics
  • Politics
  • Roe
  • Sponsored
  • Sports
  • Virtue
  • Women

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Navigation

  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Staff
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Sign up to get our newsletter your inbox every day.

Newsletter Signup

Do you want to read
more articles like this?