Lauren McLellan LIS 748 Paper 3 Librarians should be committed to and are responsible for preventing censorship in their

libraries and in their methods of collection development. To a further extent, they are called to challenge censorship. According to the American Library Association's Library Bill of Rights, Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment. In fact, ALA celebrates Banned Book Week, a week to celebrate many books that have been or are banned and to celebrate the right to access information. It is irrational to conclude that librarians, as a collective, censor materials and keep certain materials out of their collections due to personal pinions. It is part of a librarians's job to promote access to information. According to Oxford Dictionaries, censorship is defined as the practice of officially examining books, movies, etc., and suppressing unacceptable parts. Censoring material requires an attitude of exclusion, and seeking out the negative aspects of a work. Selection, then, begins with a presumption in favor of liberty of thought; censorship, with a presumption in favor of thought control (Asheim). While censorship may occur on a case by case basis, librarians, as a collective, agree that censorship is the exact opposite of their goal to provide information and knowledge to all. Librarians can help prevent censorship from occurring by creating a solid, extensive collection development policy, by creating specific policy to handle challenges to selected material, and by educating themselves on their rights as

librarians and the rights of the people that they serve. Developing a strong collection development policy is essential for building a good collection that meets the needs and wants of the library's users. It helps to enable librarians to make informed, unbiased decisions about the materials they purchase for a library. Librarians should make decisions about the materials they purchase based on community wants and needs, popularity of materials, critical reviews, patron requests, what is missing or already in the collection, cost, book size (if space is limited), age or reading level appropriateness (in a school or children's library), and many other factors not including personal bias. These policies should be created with a team of librarians and perhaps with some influence from support staff so that personal biases are less likely to have influence. In a recent School Library Journal survey, the survey found that 70% of the school librarians interviewed said that they would not purchase a book based on a possible reaction from parents (Hill 10). The fear of backlash over selection choices is very real for many librarians, and having accountability can negate some of that fear. Even individual selections, once chosen using library collection policy, may need to be considered by other librarians to ensure that the selector is not being biased or leaving out other possibilities for purchase. Having a strong collection development and selection policy is also important because many libraries face challenges to selections they make. If a librarian has a specific, carefully created selection policy that has been approved by a school administration/school board or library board, it is much easier for that librarian to justify their selections. These challenges often occur when dealing with children's materials.

Parents, other community members, and sometimes teachers may challenge material in a school library or a public children's library. This challenge is usually given on the grounds that a book or other item contains information that may be harmful to children ie, offensive language, mature subject matter, objectionable subject matter, etc. As a librarian who has faced challenges for her book selections, Dee Ann Venuto points out that cleansing collections may have the unintended effect of leaving nothing of interest for young patrons (Hill 10). Most librarians see parents as the appropriate party for making decisions about what their children should and should not read or see. Librarians who serve children are passionate about children's learning and education and are very much concerned with children's safety and their growing minds. Librarians, however, are also committed to making sure information is available to those seeking it. This is not simply an ideal librarians hold; it is an amendment they are upholding. The First Amendment declares that the government may not prohibit free speech or the freedom of the press. As public schools and public libraries are government funded and supported, librarians are working, in a sense, as government employees and must carry out the first amendment in their profession. While the law is on the side of librarians, that does not mean that librarians who add or keep controversial books in their collections will not face difficulties. Pressure from parents or the public may sway the support of administrators or librarians' superiors and librarians may face public backlash for their decisions. While it may be easier to give into pressure or fear and censor books, librarians may ultimately be

breaking the law or undermining the U.S. Constitution. Interestingly, however, the librarian's role may change when it comes to the internet and the use of filters. While librarians must not censor the physical materials entering the library, filters are required on public computers in order to receive federal funding. So, librarians who work in a public library that use internet filters may feel that they are not adhering to the ideals of their profession or the constitution. These filters sometimes accidentally filter out non-offensive, neutral websites that users need for research or finding important information. Some public libraries do not accept federal funding and do not apply filters to the internet on their public computers. Some, like The Seattle Public Library, freely allow the viewing of pornography in the adult section of the public library. This issue was recently brought to light when a patron's children inadvertently viewed pornography on a computer being used by another patron. The mother claims the children were emotionally affected by this sight and wants the library to change their policy. Some argue that children and parents have the right to be in a public place and not be exposed to pornography. Whose rights are being violated here the patron using filtered internet or the patron inadvertently viewing harmful images on another's computer? It is clear, however, that in order to protect the public they serve as well as themselves, librarians need to educate themselves on matters of selection, censorship, and given rights. The law is on the side of the librarian when it comes to matters of selection. Librarians need to know they can make decisions based on the need to provide information and not based on how parents or a religious group will react. The

American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom or the National School Board Association have sample policies and procedures online that can assist in preparation for and against a censorship challenge. Further, they can assist school librarians in developing a defense against a challenge (Hill 12). Holding on to the ideal of freedom of speech is something many have fought for with their lives and is worthy of fighting for even at the risk of one's reputation.

Works Cited Asheim, Lester. Not Censorship But Selection. Wilson Library Bulletin 28 (September 1953): 63-67. http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/oif/basics/notcensorship.cfm . "Censorship". Oxford Dictionaries. April 2010. Oxford Dictionaries. April 2010. Oxford University Press. 19 November 2012 <http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/american_english/censorship>. Hill, Rebecca. "The Problem Of Self-Censorship." School Library Monthly 27.2 (2010): 9-12. ERIC. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. Ho, Vanessa. "Seattle libraries: No sleeping or eating allowed, but porn-watching OK. Seattle Post-Intelligencer 2 Feb. 2012. 18 Nov. 2012 <http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Seattle-libraries-No-sleeping-or-eatingallowed-2941216.php>. Library Bill of Rights. American Library Association. 23 January 1996. Web. 17 Nov. 2012.