Introduction
Government does a lot of things every day to which most of the citizenry remains oblivious. Following legislation and court proceedings is tedious, and there is a lot of each. The style of legislative writing, regulatory text, and legalese is opaque to outsiders. This leads to inevitable public ignorance. However, rabble-rousers and those in their sights can't help but be deeply aware of specific issues, and Idaho has been a recent battleground state on the subject of libraries.
I don't claim to be an impartial observer here. I definitely have a horse in this race. This is a long post written over several sessions as I gathered information and extensively revised it. I think in some ways it's less coherent now than it was before I tried to clean it up. I've edited it until I hate it, so I'm going to publish anyway. It's not as polished as I would like, but that's just how it is.
The Bill
Near the end of the latest 2023 session, H314 was passed by the state legislature and sent to the governor. Brad Little vetoed the bill, citing "...[S]weeping, blanket assumptions on materials that could be determined as ‘harmful to minors’ in a local library, and will force one interpretation of that phrase onto all the patrons of the library.” The legislature failed to override the veto by only one vote.
This bill pretended to make precise definitions of what materials are objectionable, but is in reality incredibly vague and open to broadly subjective interpretation. Apparently there have been versions of this legislation for at least a year prior which failed to make it to a vote, one ominously numbered 666 in 2022, believe it or not. You'd think the numerologist types would see that as a sign? As has been demonstrated for generations, the core idea of what constitutes "objectionable" is highly subjective, and what a kids is ready to read depends on the individual more than on anyone else's categorization.
Yellow Journalism and Personal Attacks
Text cropped from an anti-library leaflet, plus old memes!
I don't live in Post Falls, but I pass through from time to time, and once worked for a business there when I lived in nearby Coeur d'Alene. I used to frequent the Hayden, Coeur d'Alene, and Post Falls libraries as a patron. I have a personal sense of connection to the region and this issue. The Community Library Network headquartered in Post Falls has recently come under attack, and it isn't pretty.
Post Falls librarian Denise Neujahr was awarded the 2023 Lemony Snicket Prize for Noble Librarians Faced with Adversity by the ALA for her Rainbow Squad events and the public backlash which resulted. As far as I can ascertain, it was a weekly safe space for kids struggling with LGBTQIA+ (do I have all the letters?) identity and their friends. This led to personal harassment and accusations of "grooming."
I'll go out on a limb here and say such accusations are objectively false, and threats against librarians is unjustified regardless of whether "gay" is a thing or not, and no matter how misguided the kids might be.
I can see the argument that elements of the trans community today are as predatory as the fashion industry pushing a skeletal aesthetic was in the past. There may be a correlation between the bulimia/anorexia panic from my youth and today's bi/trans conflict. This may be the way kids are channeling those same age-old problems to get attention from their parental figures or peer groups. They are also isolated from their natural support structures of family as inter-generational households dwindle, both parents are often working, and our lives are increasingly saturated by corporate media, institutional, and political influences. Even in a stable household, puberty means changes, and this brings confusion.
But even if every claim from these protesters is 100% accurate, the vitriol they spew towards people dealing with such internal confusion and chaos, or those trying to support those kids, is inexcusable. It sure isn't Christian. Christ came to heal the sick and save the sinner, not to condemn them for their sickness and shame them for their failings. We're supposed to be salt and light, not salty and harsh. Besides, beams and motes, y'all.
How Do They Know What They Think They Know?
One of the reasons I asked, "Do You Really Know What You Think You Know," was the kind of assertions I have seen from these folks absolutely convinced they need to protect kids from predatory librarians. Some admit they never go to the library despite their insistence about what happens there.
But the most bizarre claims seem to include accusations we are throwing away Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, and Boxcar Children to make way for a flood of homosexual occult magic. I have acquired a list of purported dangerous books. It includes the categories, Anti-police, Bisexual, Drugs, Gay, Gender Identity or Fluid, Occult, Racism, Rape, Sex, and Trans in a 10-page table of shame.
But hold up a minute. There are only a handful of copies at most of each of these books spread across at least nine libraries. One of the advantages of larger districts sharing resources is that not all libraries need to have all books at all times. Many of these contested books have one copy available. Does that look like the libraries are flooding children with this material?
I also question the validity of these accusations. First, the United States is literally built on the principle of disregard for law enforcers. Some of these complaints about racism point to books about raising kids to not be racists. Sure, there's plenty of cringe in the BLM/woke crowd, but "anti-racist" still doesn't inherently mean "anti-white." Yes, some books have minor characters in same-sex relationships, and YA fiction can include plot points like rape, drug use, and gender/sexuality issues as plot points, but I guarantee the library is not where teens are first hearing about any of these topics.
Yet people are so adamant about what they know libraries are doing that we need to pass a law!
The ALA
The American Library Association was founded on October 6, 1876, making it the oldest library association in the world. Individual librarians may join the ALA, but to my knowledge, libraries themselves do not join directly. The ALA has long stood as a beacon of principle when it comes to freedom of speech and freedom of inquiry as necessary aspects of libraries.
That said, much ink has been spilled over how a lesbian Marxist has been elected president of the ALA. This somehow means there is an open Marxist conspiracy at your local library to turn kids gay because... crickets
Oh, right, because we need guilt by association to justify loud demands. *Duh.
Censorship is invariably sold under the banner of protection from some evil, but its implementation is by coercive force, and its consequence is inevitably a stifling of valid inquiry and punishment of innocent people. This is why during September or October, most libraries have displays about banned and challenged books as part of the nationwide ALA Banned Books Week event. The goal is to promote conversation first and foremost, and to encourage people to freely explore these controversies to make up their own minds as better-informed individuals. See how many classics have been condemned in the past, and encourage discourse.
Library Reality
While I think we can all agree kids should not be exposed to explicit sexual material by strangers, different families have differing ideas on what is objectionable and when their kids are ready to learn about anatomy, reproduction, and different human relationships. While it might be possible to set tiers of access on a minor's card based on age, this also raises problems. For example, I was an advanced reader in my youth. This kind of policy would have restricted me from books I wanted to read, not because those books were inappropriate, but because some bureaucrat had deemed them beyond my grasp. Louis L'Amour westerns, Lilian Jackson Braun "Cat Who..." mysteries, Patrick F. McManus humor collections, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie detective stories, classic science fiction, The Lord of the Rings, and more would be prohibited absent direct parental permission. That kind of systemic barrier to learning and entertainment is far more probable than the scare stories told to promote this bill.
I can't speak for libraries and districts nationwide, but where I work, the goal is serving the community, not pushing an agenda. Whether Washington or Idaho, my insider's perspective suggests a culture which aims toward serving the community. Shelf space is always at a premium, and we simply can't afford the room for materials which don't check out unless they are necessary for reference purposes and balance. We need to carry what people want to borrow, while still allowing for a broad spectrum of materials for the sake of complete access for all. Pushing an agenda doesn't fit in our budget or our space.
Libraries have been accused of destroying books. If no one is reading a book, it will probably be discarded in a couple years in most branches at most districts because that shelf space is needed for something else. At my library, those books are sold at a significant loss to raise funds for other library programs instead of being thrown away. Sometimes new editions get printed, or old books get worn out, or puppies destroy dog training books (true story!). This tells us what people want or need, and we replace those books with new copies or updated editions. People panicking because hundreds of books were removed from the catalog simply don't understand how modern digital catalogs and library collections function.
As for the challenges we see based on content, I have written before about the Streisand Effect as it applies to library materials. When puritanical moral crusaders make a fuss, it raises interest. Items in question get checked out. This resets the clock on discarding the item, and the added circulation signals demand for such materials by the public. And if those controversial books keep getting "lost," guess what happens? They get removed from the catalog and replaced with a new item under a new barcode, funneling a few more cents into the pocket of the authors these activists hate most and many dollars into the hands of the mega-publishers.
A good library needs a variety of materials, particularly on the most contentious topics in public discourse. Especially as a taxpayer-funded institution, they have an obligation to serve the entire taxed community. They may have programs for homeschoolers, various book clubs, chess clubs, Dungeons & Dragons players, parents with toddlers, and more. They have books for atheists, Christians, Democrats, Republicans, scholars, casual readers, and others. If the collection were limited to what I considered accurate and worthwhile, it would be a fraction of its present size, but the library isn't just for me.
Parental Responsibility
Librarians do not have the authority to act in loco parentis. We strive to give good advice when asked about our collection and help readers find what they want to read. It's not foolproof, but by and large we're out to help readers develop their own interests, not push agendas as said previously. We have access to an array of powerful tools to help us inform young readers and their parents. It starts with this super-secret thing called a "Google search," or the arcane mysteries of "Goodreads," but there are other tools as well depending on the district.
If you are concerned about what your kids are reading, monitor what they borrow yourself. Many parents come in with suggested reading lists, or lists of books to avoid, created by various groups. That's fine. I may not always agree with their judgements either way, but I have no issues with people who want to inform themselves proactively. My concern is those who want to impose their preferences by threat of fines and imprisonment. No matter how virtuous the motive, the outcome there is vicious.
The Library Is Not Turning Your Kid Gay
Plain and simple. Stop being belligerently antagonistic toward the people whose job is to help you. Don't fall for fearmongers and muckrakers. Cataloguing books is complicated, and yeah, sometimes items may land in the wrong section, like books about puberty which definitely fit the Young Adult demographic but maybe don't belong in Juvenile Non-Fiction. If something seems out of place, start with assuming there was a mistake instead of malice, because maybe we're underpaid and over-stressed and mistakes happen. Some librarians have personal agendas no doubt, but there is no systemic conspiracy to corrupt your kiddo.
The library is a boon to homeschoolers, autodidacts, D.I.Y.-ers, mystery lovers, sci-fi fanatics, independent thinkers, and anyone else. We are juggling competing demands from many interest groups and populations, but we are not trying to indoctrinate anyone. Actually visit your library. Look at what is actually on the shelf. Talk to people. Read a challenged book and form your own opinion. And whenever someone spouts some sensationalist claim, place the burden of proof on them.
Addendum
I was just sent a link to this article from the local paper there.
