The scope and impact of book banning efforts have increased drastically in America over the past ten years. Public school libraries across the country have either been threatened with or experienced a diminishment in agency and influence, primarily through legislative means.
Proponents of these efforts often claim they are only concerned with school libraries because of their strong influence on children. But putting aside the many issues and contradictions within this anti-library movement, that supposed boundary has already been blatantly violated.
Public libraries in Tennessee are now experiencing the same targeted propaganda and legislation used against school libraries. At the beginning of February, lawmakers introduced HB 2449/SB 2319, a bill brought to both chambers of the state legislature. It is notably similar to those proposed and/or passed in other states regarding public school libraries. Its primary component is the introduction of a “reconsideration policy” that would require public libraries to respond to any and all removal or relocation requests made by county residents.
While the library staff may technically reject these requests, that’s only a surface-level protection. The deeper problems lie in the time and resources required to address what could be hundreds of complaints, along with the damage these efforts inflict on the reputation and authority of public libraries. These institutions are already dealing with rising operational and labor costs on a static or shrinking budget, so even a dozen requests can place significant strain on a small or understaffed public library.
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Furthermore, a reconsideration policy is unnecessary, as it is already standard practice for libraries to evaluate their collections for potentially offensive or outdated materials. And even if some items go unnoticed or unaddressed, that is almost certainly due to the previously mentioned lack of resources—not incompetence or ignorance. So why is there any need for such significant and intrusive adjustments?
While children are an important segment of public library patrons, they spend far less time unsupervised in public libraries than in school libraries. Therefore, the main concern posed by many book banners about parents being unaware of the content their children are interacting with is largely irrelevant.
The creators of this bill are either unaware of how libraries operate or are prioritizing political theater over the needs of an invaluable community support system. They must therefore be met with engagement and protest to remind them of their duty to support the needs of their constituents, not the interests of third parties.
Similar legislation continues to be proposed and even enacted across the country. EveryLibrary maintains a list of concerning bills, along with one for pro-library legislation, for anyone who wants to keep track of what is happening in their own community.
Visit www.everylibrary.org to learn more about our work on behalf of libraries.
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