When I began library school, the Intellectual Freedom component of librarianship was what I first gravitated to. The battle against close-minded individuals who would jeopardize free and unfettered access to the printed page was, and is, anathema to me. As a result of my interest in this area I was invited to be on the Oklahoma Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Committee before I even began to work in a library.
Every year the American Library Association releases their list of the most challenged books in America. With there being such a pervasive aspect in today’s society that lives their lives mired in an intangible fear it seems that there is no shortage to books that, if not yanked from a shelf somewhere, are at least threatened to be pulled.
I enjoy reading the challenged works (I’ve read 6 of this year’s top 10). (Part of my attraction to this is my desire to have my inner anger stoked but that is a more introspective post that will have to wait.) As I read these challenged works I shake my head at the intolerant minds who would challenge such seminal pieces of literature.
And yet I wonder if I, too, am guilty of censorship. Part of my responsibility is ordering materials. I often find myself, particularly in my ordering of religious and science materials, wrestling with certain titles that I find to be too conservative or polemical.
Granted, I have a collection development policy that stipulates that positive reviews are a deciding factor in what I will or will not order. I rely on that a lot, especially when I get requests for things like The Patriot’s Bible. However, I wonder how much I TRULY support intellectual freedom when I bristle at ordering certain titles.
With that said, every month I order things that I disagree with that are positively reviewed. My point is that it is often difficult to do, and we librarians must be aware of the fact that intellectual freedom goes both ways.
