Preemptive challenges in libraries

Librarians are under siege right now, in a way that is unprecedented. 2022 was already a year that shattered censorship records, but data released recently by the American Library Association showed that, during 2023, book bans continued to rise, nationwide (Unite Against Book Bans, 2023).

Between Jan. 1 and Aug. 31, 2023, the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom reported 695 attempts to censor library materials and services. Ninety-two percent of the books that were challenged, were part of attempts to censor multiple titles at a time. These attempts at censorship targeted 1,915 unique titles, and 3,923 titles in school districts and public libraries (Unite Against Book Bans, 2023).

With these attempts come attacks upon librarians: attempts to slap them with criminal charges for making “explicit” materials available (Mechling, 2022) or hateful slurs directed against them, calling them “pedophiles” and “groomers” (Gonzalez, 2023).

Under these fearful conditions, I think it might be easy to preemptively ban materials in the library collection: including librarians making a choice not to even purchase them.

PEN America mentions “preemptive bans” in its 2022 report on censorship in America: citing cases where school administrators banned books “in the absence of any challenge in their own district, seemingly in a preemptive response to potential bills, threats from state officials, or challenges in other districts” (Friedman & Johnson, “Preemptive Bans”).

I can’t imagine any librarian welcoming the label of “groomer” or “pedophile.” But I really think we need to stand firm against an onslaught of hatred toward minority viewpoints: books by and about people of color or members of the LGBTQAI+ community. All of this can be terribly lonely work when faced with an onslaught of hate.

One thing that supporters can do is file requests with their libraries to stock books and other media that center minority perspectives. By doing so, we demonstrate a need for these materials in our libraries. The voices of hatred must not be the only viewpoints librarians are exposed to.

And in California at least, we now have one more tool to reduce the likelihood of attempts to censor books: with our governor signing legislation that prohibits book bans and textbook censorship (California governor’s office, 2023).

References:
California governor’s office. (2023, Sept. 25). California bans book bans and textbook censorship in schools. https://www.gov.ca.gov/2023/09/25/california-bans-book-bans-and-textbook-censorship-in-schools/

Friedman, J. & Johnson, N.F. (2022, Sept. 19). Banned in the USA: The growing movement to censor books in schools. PEN America. https://pen.org/report/banned-usa-growing-movement-to-censor-books-in-schools/

Gonzalez, X. (2023, March 15).The librarians are not okay. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/03/book-bans-censorship-librarian-challenges/673398/

Mechling, L. (2022, Sept. 20). ‘We’ve moved backwards’: US librarians face unprecedented attacks amid right-wing book bans. The guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/sep/20/librarians-banned-books-attacks-library

Unite Against Book Bans. (2023, Sept. 30). ALA releases preliminary 2023 book ban data. News. https://uniteagainstbookbans.org/ala-releases-preliminary-2023-book-ban-data/