As libraries in the US.
The librarians here are using Freedom to read Week, which wraps on Saturday, to get attention to the problem, fearing that it can worsen and dissuade future librarians to enter the profession.
“Honestly, it is a bit scary,” said Kristen Caschera, central information supervisor and fiction of the central branch of the London Public Library, of news from the United States. In multiple states, laws They have been presented that threaten librarians with hard punishments for distributing books that are considered inappropriate.
“It’s wild think … how could this be happening. But more than ever, I think it reaffirms our commitment to ensure that the greatest amount of information is available as possible,” said Casha.
Calls to eliminate books from the library shelves in the US. He shot in recent yearspartly attributed to organized campaigns, often Conservative political groups.
These book prohibition campaigns have not materialized to the same extent in Canada, but similar efforts have been directed to the north, a recent Research by The fifth estate revealed.
A 2024 Study of the Canadian Federation of Library Associations He has documented a growing number of book challenges in recent years, particularly from the Covid-19 pandemic.
He discovered that there were 19 challenging complaints in the books in Canadian libraries in 2023 and almost half had approximately 2SLGBTQ content. That is compared to approximately 10 percent in 2019, according to the study.
When asked what he has heard of librarians in training on the current atmosphere, Caschera said, for some, he has strengthened his feelings about intellectual freedom.
In the USA, book ban campaigns have seen the number of titles directed in recent years to more than 4.200 in 2023, compared to less than 200 per decade before, the American Library Association (Wing) says.
The books on problems and characters of 2SLGBTQ+ have also been subject to a growing number of challenges in school libraries in Ontario, influenced by US campaigns, said Wendy Burch Jones, president of the Libraries Association of the Ontario School.
“Many times, the books that are being challenged are coming out of lists that are published and ignore. Many times, people who ask the books to be prohibited have not even read the books, “he said.
He added that it was important that school boards had a rigorous selection of books and policies for desection, and a clear language on how to face the challenges.
London tomorrow5:40The library list
The London Library, Kristen Caschera, stopped in the morning of London to talk about the freedom to read the week in Canada and how to celebrate intellectual freedom.
To the south of London, the Public Library of St. Thomas is also taking the matter seriously, said its main librarian. The library has designated 2025 as the year to ensure that its position on intellectual freedom is “really solid” and its intellectual freedom policy “Ironclad”, said Heather Robinson.
“We are not resting on our laurels. Because this could happen, and it could happen at any time, it is what I am thinking anyway. We have to be ready,” said Robinson, who has been with the library for 27 years and is his CEO.
“There seems to be information” about how to eliminate books, he said. “They are different methods than what has been. We are seeing the systematic elimination of the books that a group considers should not be in the library.”
According to the Free Expression Center of the Metropolitan University of Toronto, Ontario libraries received 39 complaints about books in 2024, with 28 asking for the elimination of the offensive title.
A challenge was reported in the London Library. Caschera said the book of majority involved A sister By Bastien Vivè: the plaintiff who felt should be in the adult section. In a letter to the plaintiffThe library said the book would remain in its section of graphic novels for young adults.
In the St. Thomas Library, a challenge for the language was presented Disgusting rhymes By Roald Dahl. The plaintiff wanted the book to be removed, a Application that was not successful.
None of the books are about 2SLGBTQ+topics, but a concern is that future challenges will be, driven by the types of pressure campaigns they have addressed Drag Queen Story Sessions in local libraries.
Of the Top 10 challenged books In the United States in 2023, most had “LGBTQIA+ content” cited as a reason, says the wing.
“It’s scary, and you feel the feeling that we now need to stop being, neutral and pleasant,” Robinson said.
“We are all that, but now there must be a little more than an advantage for libraries. We will be asked to defend things like intellectual freedom.”
