Week 14 Prompt Response
1. If you are moving the Urban or LGBT fiction in order to make them easier to find- at the request of several patrons who are fans of the genres but complain that they cannot find them, and you regularly promote them and make displays of them - moving them could be done in a tasteful, helpful way. The ALA’s Intellectual Freedom Manual (2015) states “Viewpoint-neutral directional aids help users locate materials, but labels and rating systems that attempt to prejudice users are inappropriate and can be a censor’s tool” (p. 135). In theory, the Urban and LGBTQ fiction could be separated from the general fiction, well-labeled and easily located by patrons.
Tarulli (2018) writes about creating a “gender and identity” collection for a high school library and notes that cataloging was a concern: “In the library catalogue, a new genre heading, “Gender and Identity,” was established so that teens or faculty could retrieve the entire collection in one search” (p. 249). This is something to be considered, as finding the materials through the catalog should be a seamless process. Does this mean that shelving the materials should reflect their genre heading? The library I worked in would have shelved them separately simply based on ease of access much like we did our parenting help collection, westerns, science fiction, and large print.
Tarulli (2018) writes about creating a “gender and identity” collection for a high school library and notes that cataloging was a concern: “In the library catalogue, a new genre heading, “Gender and Identity,” was established so that teens or faculty could retrieve the entire collection in one search” (p. 249). This is something to be considered, as finding the materials through the catalog should be a seamless process. Does this mean that shelving the materials should reflect their genre heading? The library I worked in would have shelved them separately simply based on ease of access much like we did our parenting help collection, westerns, science fiction, and large print.
2. If, on the other, you are being asked to move them out of a request to keep them segregated because patrons don’t like them, you are approaching the slippery slope of censorship. In this instance, I would hope that the library’s collection development policy would have some guidelines that would help the administration and board deal with the patrons’ request in a timely, respectful manner while explaining that the library will not agree to move the collections out of a request to segregate.
By and large, moving books in an effort to keep them away from people who don’t like them is censorship. Downey and LaRue (2017) note that if you move a book away from its intended audience, that is censorship. So, moving a children’s book (for instance A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo) to the adult fiction collection is censorship. But, if you keep the Urban or LGBTQ fiction books on the same floor, and in the same general area but shelve them separately, is that censorship?
In scenario 2 described above, I would not move the Urban and LGBTQ fiction collections for the following reasons:
1.In practical matters, it keeps patrons from seeing the full fiction collection together.
2. It may alienate some patron groups by making them feel like the books they want to check-out are less worthy or being “hidden”. Labeling or shelving differently might even keep some patrons from checking them out who would otherwise want to.
3. The public library exists to serve all citizens regardless of gender, race, or sexual orientation. “The library collection should reflect the interests of the entire community, not just the majority” (Magi, 2015, p.136). Even if a group have people have started a petition to intimidate the library into moving these materials (as they did in Orange County, IA), the library has a responsibility to serve all citizens, not just those being the loudest at a given moment. Starting to treat materials based on one or two subjects or themes differently can lead to more problems down the road.
4.Most of the banned and challenged books in the past several years have been LGBTQ th emed books. At least six of the top eleven titles challenged in 2018 were challenged due to LGBTQ content (Top Ten Most Challenged Books Lists, 2019). In light of this, libraries have to be careful that they are not self-censoring these materials or treating them differently than other materials.
5. Placing these items in a singular location makes them easier to steal and/or deface, which is unfortunately something that we have to think about.
6. Finally, if you make a habit of being intimidated by one group of complainers, you will be likely to come up against another group down the road with a similar but different complaint. “I don’t like books about aliens being at the library because I don’t believe in aliens, and I am not going to come back unless you move those books to their own section that I can keep my family away from.” What will it be next month? Someone who doesn’t like that you have books written by Belgians?
My top recommendation for first steps, assuming you have strong policies and an educated board of trustees (really, these are the first steps!): consider the root cause of the collection move request and speak directly to patrons who frequently use these collections in order to understand their thoughts and how they think it could affect their access and impressions of the materials. Only then can you decide the next move, but proceed with extreme caution if you find yourself in “scenario 2”.
References
Downey, J., & LaRue, J. (2017). Public Library Collections in the Balance: Censorship, Inclusivity, and Truth. Santa Barbara, California: Libraries Unlimited. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.ulib.uits.iu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1543668&site=eds-live
Magi, T. J. (2015). Intellectual freedom manual. Chicago: ALA Editions.
Orange City library to change how materials are grouped after complaints on LGBTQ content. (2018, March 21). Retrieved from https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2018/03/21/library-change-lgbtq-content-grouping-change-orange-city-iowa/445970002/
Tarulli, L. (2018). Gender, Sexuality, and Identity in Fiction: Suggesting New Titles to Make All Readers Feel Like They Belong. Reference & User Services Quarterly, (4), 248. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.ulib.uits.iu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgsr&AN=edsgcl.568781813&site=eds-live
Top Ten Most Challenged Books Lists. (2019, April 09). Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10#2018
By and large, moving books in an effort to keep them away from people who don’t like them is censorship. Downey and LaRue (2017) note that if you move a book away from its intended audience, that is censorship. So, moving a children’s book (for instance A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo) to the adult fiction collection is censorship. But, if you keep the Urban or LGBTQ fiction books on the same floor, and in the same general area but shelve them separately, is that censorship?
In scenario 2 described above, I would not move the Urban and LGBTQ fiction collections for the following reasons:
1.In practical matters, it keeps patrons from seeing the full fiction collection together.
2. It may alienate some patron groups by making them feel like the books they want to check-out are less worthy or being “hidden”. Labeling or shelving differently might even keep some patrons from checking them out who would otherwise want to.
3. The public library exists to serve all citizens regardless of gender, race, or sexual orientation. “The library collection should reflect the interests of the entire community, not just the majority” (Magi, 2015, p.136). Even if a group have people have started a petition to intimidate the library into moving these materials (as they did in Orange County, IA), the library has a responsibility to serve all citizens, not just those being the loudest at a given moment. Starting to treat materials based on one or two subjects or themes differently can lead to more problems down the road.
4.Most of the banned and challenged books in the past several years have been LGBTQ th emed books. At least six of the top eleven titles challenged in 2018 were challenged due to LGBTQ content (Top Ten Most Challenged Books Lists, 2019). In light of this, libraries have to be careful that they are not self-censoring these materials or treating them differently than other materials.
5. Placing these items in a singular location makes them easier to steal and/or deface, which is unfortunately something that we have to think about.
6. Finally, if you make a habit of being intimidated by one group of complainers, you will be likely to come up against another group down the road with a similar but different complaint. “I don’t like books about aliens being at the library because I don’t believe in aliens, and I am not going to come back unless you move those books to their own section that I can keep my family away from.” What will it be next month? Someone who doesn’t like that you have books written by Belgians?
My top recommendation for first steps, assuming you have strong policies and an educated board of trustees (really, these are the first steps!): consider the root cause of the collection move request and speak directly to patrons who frequently use these collections in order to understand their thoughts and how they think it could affect their access and impressions of the materials. Only then can you decide the next move, but proceed with extreme caution if you find yourself in “scenario 2”.
References
Downey, J., & LaRue, J. (2017). Public Library Collections in the Balance: Censorship, Inclusivity, and Truth. Santa Barbara, California: Libraries Unlimited. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.ulib.uits.iu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1543668&site=eds-live
Magi, T. J. (2015). Intellectual freedom manual. Chicago: ALA Editions.
Orange City library to change how materials are grouped after complaints on LGBTQ content. (2018, March 21). Retrieved from https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2018/03/21/library-change-lgbtq-content-grouping-change-orange-city-iowa/445970002/
Tarulli, L. (2018). Gender, Sexuality, and Identity in Fiction: Suggesting New Titles to Make All Readers Feel Like They Belong. Reference & User Services Quarterly, (4), 248. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohost-com.proxy.ulib.uits.iu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgsr&AN=edsgcl.568781813&site=eds-live
Top Ten Most Challenged Books Lists. (2019, April 09). Retrieved from http://www.ala.org/advocacy/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/top10#2018
My initial reaction was also a firm "no." However, the intent is important. If I'm basing my decision on the community I serve, I know the request is likely so patrons can avoid books that make them uncomfortable. By separating those materials, it's like telling people they don't belong.
ReplyDeleteI love how organized your thought process is on this; clearly you are ready to go to battle for your principles. I aspire to your level of thoughtful action--and I do seriously appreciate strong policies and a good library board as first steps.
ReplyDelete(Belgians! The worst!)
I loved all of your documentation. That was excellent! I didn't do as well with mine as far as using outside sources, I based mine of working in my library the last 12 years. It is really interesting to me to see your thoughts and they are very thought provoking. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI am curious if you are willing to break out other genres like SF and Fantasy (which are typically separated from general fiction). I think that you make great points about segregation. That is a concern and I read an authors response to this problem this week that really made me stop and think. I also don't know if there is a huge benefit to being able to see the whole collection at one time. To me, seeing all of the books is overwhelming especially when I am looking for a genre subset such as horror. Seeing mysteries and women's fiction and thrillers is not a bad thing but it makes it harder to find what I am looking for.
ReplyDeleteI had a good time reading your post. It was well thought out and made me think more about the prompt than I already had.
Hi Zach and thanks!
DeleteBreaking out SF and fantasy is different to me because there isn't really the issue of bias against them. If half of the banned books last year were due to SF or fantasy themes we would have a bigger discussion. (Of course, there are people who don't think Harry Potter is appropriate because of the magic ...*sigh*).
There's a lot to think about with this issue. I think how a library deals with it depends on several factors, the main one being the intent of the request. Other issues are space considerations and feelings of the patrons who use these collections the most. It would almost be worth some formal evaluations with patrons to find out how they would feel about moving the collections. I really focused more on the LGBTQ collection, but our classmate Monique made some great points about how to deal with urban/street lit.
You make an interesting point about the intent of requests to separate collections based on genre or type. But presumably you would still have to deal with the possibility of people vandalizing books in an LGBTQ collection even if they were separated by the request of those who enjoy the genre, right? I think it makes the intent argument a little trickier because some of the reasons you give for separating items can potentially work against you in either scenario. Anyway, nice job considering the possibilities that come up with a problem like this!
ReplyDeleteHi Laura,
ReplyDeleteThe sixth point you listed interested me because it was not something I had thought of myself. That is definitely true though. Caving in to the demands of one group of complainers can set a bad precedent. In the moment it might seem easier to just separate the LGBTQ books since it will appease them and avoid a scandal. But in the long run, what message would we be sending to our community? Where do we draw the line?
P.S. Thanks for the shout-out! :)
Fantastic prompt response! I echo your classmate's comments, the layout and point by point breakdown of this issue is marvelous. The intent is the biggest thing and you addressed that really well in your two scenarios. Excellent job and full points!
ReplyDelete