Book Challenges at Your Library

 

For many librarians (myself included) their professional role spills over to our personal lives. This is often the case with me. I identify as a librarian - it's part of who I am. 

I never thought I'd have a serious book banning incident. How wrong I was. 

My library (and me by extension) is going through it right now, you might have seen it in the news. 

So, here's what I learned.

1. It's not personal (It's hard NOT to take it personally)
2. It's not your collection (Even though it feels like it is when you put all the work in effort into creating it. It's really for the library. Yes I buy books I don't want to purchase for a variety of reasons)
3. Let your boss take control (Mine handled it like a Rock Star)
4. The community is in an uproar, (Most of it is great, and it means talking to lots of people about books and the library - also great. It's been super nice to have the support of the community. BUt, some of it is not great.)
5. People will yell at you, it's not personal, they're upset too - it's your job to calm them down (if you can) with the facts.

PSA: 

Libraries are not parents; we provide books and information for Children and Teens to read. 

It's the parents' job to make sure their children are reading what they believe is appropriate for their family. We believe in the freedom to read and support that freedom with a variety of books. 

A few ways to support your library:

1. Visit the library
2. Have a library card
3. Check items out
4. Attend a library program