Jennifer Downey

Public Library Collections in the Balance (eBook, PDF)

Censorship, Inclusivity, and Truth

• Format: PDF

Produktbeschreibung

A fascinating and informative read for librarians, library staff, and MLIS students, this book offers practical information and professional guidelines to examine current issues in censorship and libraries while also enabling readers to consider their own opinions about intellectual freedom. This book addresses contemporary issues in censorship and intellectual freedom and can serve as an invaluable resource for librarians and other library staff and as an eye-opening read for MLIS students. It covers the waterfront of intricate and thorny issues regarding intellectual freedom, including determining strategies for patron privacy, deciding how to filter public computers, handling challenges to items in a collection, and recognizing and eliminating under-the-radar self-censorship during collection development and weeding. Readers will also gain an understanding of the perils of over-reliance on community assessments and other evaluative tools and consider important concerns of public library employees, such as whether to restrict borrowing privileges of R-rated movies and M-rated video games to patrons of various ages, and the legalities that surround these questions. Each chapter blends instructive background narrative with practical advice, research findings, and relevant information about librarianship's professional guidelines, including the ALA's Library Bill of Rights and the Freedom to Read Statement. Vignettes, "what would you do?" examples, effective nonconfrontational techniques for conflict resolution, and lists of tips and traps help readers to think critically about their own biases and rehearse possible responses to controversial situations. Librarians, library staff, and MLIS students can use this book for personal professional development, as supplemental reading for MLIS courses or professional training workshops, or as a resource for library policy-planning discussions.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Bloomsbury Publishing Inc
• Seitenzahl: 224
• Altersempfehlung: ab 7 Jahre
• Erscheinungstermin: 25. Juli 2017
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781440849657
• Artikelnr.: 68183768

Autorenporträt

Jennifer Downey, MLIS, is reference librarian at Rancho Cucamonga Public Library.

Inhaltsangabe

At first glance, librarianship appears to be more democratic, socially
responsible, and egalitarian than most professions. After all, a quick Web
search reveals that the American Library Association (ALA) boasts its own
Bill of Rights (), an office dedicated to the preservation and defense of
intellectual freedom (), and a progressive-minded round table group that
works in support of social responsibilities such as equity of access,
economic parity, and human rights issues (). Librarians do indeed work hard
and sacrifice greatly in defense of intellectual freedom and the fight
against censorship, and due credit should be given to those who make these
efforts. As of this writing, the ALA has accredited 59 graduate schools of
library and information science throughout the United States and Canada ().
In addition to the LIS master's degree, many also offer doctorial level
studies. Distance learning is becoming a common option among these
universities as well. One might assume, given the democratic and socially
responsible nature of librarianship and the small yet substantial number of
universities where a LIS graduate degree may be obtained that an education
in library and information science would include a good deal of study in
the areas of intellectual freedom, censorship, equity, and diversity. And
one might be correct, depending on what school is chosen and what electives
are selected. On the other hand, depending on these same circumstances, one
might be considerably mistaken. Fewer than half of the 59 LIS graduate
programs accredited by the ALA offer any courses at all in intellectual
freedom, censorship, or ethics of librarianship. Those universities that do
have courses on these topics almost always categorize them as electives.
Some universities offer the courses regularly in the schedule so students
have a chance to work them into their schedules should they choose to do
so; but at other institutions, it can take up to two years for even one to
come around. PURPOSE OF THIS BOOKThe purpose of this book is fill in the
gaps left in library education and to help spark the idea that censorship
and intellectual freedom are important topics that should be more prevalent
in LIS education. Whether as a professional reading, a textbook or as
supplemental reading, librarians and students can use this book to examine
both the professional guidelines of librarianship and their own personal
feelings about topics that can be difficult to think about. The main reason
this book was written was to encourage readers to think about issues that
are not always easy to think about and to be prepared for the inevitable.
The objective is not to change minds but to open them. Whether it serves as
required or supplemental reading for LIS coursework or as professional
reading for anyone who works in public libraries or simply cares about
their role in society, it is hoped that this book offers new insight and
challenges readers to explore delicate topics with open and curious minds.
SCOPE OF THIS BOOKThis book deals primarily with issues that arise in
public libraries. Because partnerships and collaborations between different
types of libraries is a growing phenomenon, there is some mention of
school, academic, and other types of libraries, but public library
collections are the core of what is addressed. It should be mentioned here
that school libraries bear a larger burden when it comes to community
challenges to materials than do public libraries. As noted in Chapter 7,
partnerships between public libraries and school libraries are becoming
more and more common, as school libraries often have more limits on
collecting than do public libraries. These partnerships provide a chance
for public libraries to offer children and teens in a community the books
they desire without school librarians having to take unnecessary risks of
offending parents and administrators. Therefore, school librarians may
benefit from this book as well. While an exploration of censorship and
intellectual freedom issues in libraries across both time and the globe
would be fascinating in its complexity, this book deals with American
libraries. That said, the ALA is closely affiliated with the Canadian
Library Association, and libraries in these two countries are quite similar
in both purpose and intent (). For that reason, it is anticipated that
those involved with Canadian public libraries could benefit from this book
as well. After an exploration of the history of censorship in American
libraries, common intellectual freedom and censorship concerns such as the
filtering of public computers, the benefits and perils of community
assessments, and questions of quality and demand in collection development
are examined. In addition, the ins and outs of community challenges are
explored in depth throughout the book-from examining what types of elements
make a book or other item susceptible to being challenged to the writing of
strong policies and the training of staff in order to prevent or quell
challenges to what steps to take when a challenge does occur or get out of
control. Only the most fortunate of librarians will never have to speak
with irate patrons about books or other items that are seen as offensive.
For those who have not yet dealt with such situations, it is hoped that
this advice will be useful when it is needed. For those who have been there
and done that, it is hoped that new skills or at least the comfort of
solitarily will come in handy the next time around. There are two
appendices in this book. One contains a source list of lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) resources for librarians to use in
collection development. The other offers a list of small and alternative
presses, also to assist in collection development. Because LGBT-themed
books are uniquely vulnerable to censorship from both the public and from
librarians themselves, it was deemed important to include resources for
this demographic, as they seldom turn up in mainstream review sources. The
same goes for small and alternative presses. In building comprehensive,
well-rounded collections, librarians need as many places to turn as
possible. INTENDED AUDIENCEWhile this book is chiefly intended for
professionals in public librarianship and those studying to work in public
libraries, it may also be used in training activities for librarians,
library support staff, trustees, and stakeholders. Libraries often respond
to the surprise and unpleasantness of a challenge by providing training and
support and by changing policies in order to fill in whatever gaps were
missing that could have helped tame the challenge more effectively. In
cases like these, librarians and library managers can turn to this book for
guidance and support. Hopefully, this book will appeal to librarians and
their allies in all stages of life and career-from the young student
exploring ideas of intellectual freedom for the first time to the retiree
volunteering at the local public library and wanting to learn more about
the issues at the root of the profession. Finally, those who issue
challenges to materials at their public libraries may benefit, directly or
indirectly, from this book. Challenges, despite the turmoil they create
among library staff, are almost always the result of good intentions: the
protection of children, the betterment of the community, the sanctity of
great literature. This is not an "us-versus-them" book. Although
challengers and librarians are so often at odds, this book aims to help
readers understand that the two camps have more in common than they might
know. HOW TO USE THIS BOOKThis is not a "do this, don't do that" manual.
While professional guidelines are in place to help librarians navigate
delicate situations involving censorship and intellectual freedom, these
are not simplistic subjects and there are no easy answers. When situations
that involve these topics arise, they are almost guaranteed to be taxing,
confusing, and even divisive. Censorship, especially, is a topic that
brings up difficult questions with no obvious right-or-wrong answers. It's
probably fair to assume that most librarians would agree with the simple
statement that censorship isn't a good thing, but what one person sees as
absolutely right is very often seen by another as absolutely wrong. Throw
in technology, children's rights, parents' concerns, and societal
expectations of what the public library's role is, and you've got so many
differences of opinion that coming to any kind of consensus would be not
only a misguided endeavor but an impossible one. Perhaps, reading this book
will change your mind about some of your convictions, and perhaps it
won't-but a conviction that hasn't been examined is really just a bias. It
is through the examination of previously held notions of what is good and
what is bad that people come to learn what they truly believe. It's a
difficult process and not a particularly comfortable one, but, hopefully,
coming out wiser and stronger in the end makes it worth the struggle. With
this in mind, it is recommended that this book, especially the vignettes
and "what would you do" questions be carefully explored with open minds and
a commitment to critical thought. All in all, it is hoped that reading this
book will raise important questions and help guide the way to finding the
answers. What those answers may be is entirely up to you. REFERENCES
American Library Association. (2006a, June 30). Library Bill of Rights.
Retrieved from . American Library Association. (2006b, August 3).
Alphabetical List of Institutions with ALA-Accredited Programs. Retrieved
from . American Library Association. (2007, April 19). Canadian Library
Association. Retrieved from . American Library Association. (2008, June 9).
Office for Intellectual Freedom. Retrieved from . American Library
Association. (2012, February 22). Social Responsibilities Round Table.
Retrieved from .