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liyazaki · 1 year

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via the Arkansas Advocate

it’s official: in Arkansas, library staff may now be charged with a Class D felony for providing books to their communities that are deemed “obscene”.

in Florida, school librarians and teachers can be criminally charged for checking out books to kids that dare to touch on LGBTQ topics & gender identity, thanks to the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

book censorship in the US is at such an all-time high, book sanctuaries are popping up all over the country.

library staff aren’t physically safe, either. just over the past couple months, threats against libraries and their staff resulted in the temporary closure of “five public library systems due to bomb and shooting threats," ALA. active shooter trainings have become the new norm for me.

the censorship myself and my colleagues have been watching unfold over the last several years has felt like watching a slow-motion car crash.

but this bill? this feels like a death knell for my profession.

via Teen Vogue

when I was a confused queer kid growing up in an ultra-religious household, the library was my refuge. when I asked hard questions, librarians listened and gave me the tools I needed to answer them. in many ways, libraries saved my life. it's why I became a librarian.

I can't believe I'm living in times where future generations of kids may not have access to the same refuge I did, but it's happening.

if you live in the US and you care about protecting open, equitable access to information, please check out the American Library Association for anti-censorship resources in your state, info on contacting your representatives, etc.

you can also report censorship you see in your community and ALA will investigate (1-800-545-2433, ext. 4266; [email protected]).

I know this isn't my usual content, but libraries are standing on the edge of a horrifying precipice- one we can't escape on our own.

libraries are free society's canary in the coal mine, and all the alarms are singing. when libraries fall, nations usually aren't far behind.

this matters- and we need help.

#censorship #book banning #libraries #banned books #arkansas #florida #public libraries #school libraries #librarians #american library association #american libraries #lgbtq+#lgbtq+ history #us politics #homophobia #transphobia

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redgoldsparks · 1 year

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Transcript below the cut.

instagram / patreon / portfolio / etsy / my book / redbubble

Panel 1: For the second year in a row, Gender Queer was the most challenged book in the US, reported the American Library Association.

Panel 2: It’s been a weird two years. Number of unique titles challenged in the US by year. 2000: 378 titles. 2005: 259 titles. 2010: 262 titles. 2015: 190 titles. 2020: 223 titles. 2021: 1858 titles. 2022: 2571 titles.

Panel 3: It’s been a hard two years. The ACLU is tracking 469 anti-LGBTQ bills in the US.

Panel 4: Usually I prefer to wait until something is over before I write about it, so I have time to reflect. But this experience has not ended.

Panel 5: It has only gotten louder. (A series of screen shoots of news headlines about Gender Queer, book challenges and an obscenity lawsuit against the book being dismissed in the state of Virginia).

Panel 6: I’m constantly wondering, “When should I speak and when should I let the book speak for itself?”

Panel 7: I remember when I realized that the previous most challenged book spent five years in the top five.

2020- Melissa by Alex Gino at #1 2019- Melissa by Alex Gino at #1 2018- Melissa by Alex Gino at #1 2017- Melissa by Alex Gino at #5 2016- Melissa by Alex Gino at #3

Panel 8: Oh, I think I can take my time figuring out how to respond. I think I’m in this for the long haul...

Panel 9: Ways to support libraries and challenged authors: Check out and read challenged books. Vote for and attend library board and school board meetings. Report censorship to the ALA and PEN America. Vote to fund libraries. Speak up against legislation limiting the teaching of queer history, sex ed, abortion and the history of racism in the US.

Panel 10: Most challenged books of 2022:

1. Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe

2. All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M Johnson

3. The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

4. Flamer by Mike Curato

5. (tie) Looking For Alaska by John Green

5. (tie) The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

7. Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison

8. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

9. Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez

10. (tie) A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas

10. (tie) Crank by Ellen Hopkins

10. (tie) Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

10. (tie) This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson

#gender queer a memoir #maia kobabe #book bans #book challenges #american library association

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dduane · 8 months

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Now this is a fabulous thing! :) Congrats, Neil!

#neil gaiman #READ poster #American Library Association #ALA

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thebanishedreader · 7 months

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7 Banned Book Requests Made This Year

Infographic & original post by Impact

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capricorn-0mnikorn · 11 months

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I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.

IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.

V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.

VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.

VII. All people, regardless of origin, age, background, or views, possess a right to privacy and confidentiality in their library use. Libraries should advocate for, educate about, and protect people’s privacy, safeguarding all library use data, including personally identifiable information.

"Library Bill of Rights", American Library Association, June 30, 2006.

http://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill (Accessed May 10, 2023)

#american library association #Library bill of rights #right to information #right to privacy #civil liberties

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uwmspeccoll · 17 days

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Milestone Monday

The King's Hares, from Norway

The Princess with the Twelve Pair of Golden Shoes, from Denmark

Queen Crane, from Sweden

The Rooster, the Hand Mill and the Swarm of Hornets, from Sweden

Ti-Tirit-Ti, from Italy

The Adventures of Bona and Nello, from Italy

The Hedgehog Who Became a Prince, from Poland

The Flight, from Poland

April 1st is the birthday of American librarian and storyteller Augusta Braxton Baker (1911-1998). Born to two schoolteachers in Baltimore, Baker was a voracious student who read at a young age and careened through elementary and high school. With advocacy support from Eleanor Roosevelt, Baker was admitted to the Albany Teacher’s College and in 1934 earned a B. A. in Education and a B. S. in Library Science making her the first African American to earn a librarianship degree from the college.

In 1939, Baker went on to work as the children’s librarian at New York Public Library’s Harlem branch, founding the James Weldon Johnson Memorial Collection of Children’s Books to showcase representation of Black children and life in books, and beginning a lifelong career with children’s literature and the New York Public Library (NYPL). In 1953, she was appointed Storytelling Specialist and Assistant Coordinator of Children’s Services, quickly moving into the Coordinator of Children’s Services position years later and becoming the first African American to hold an administrative position with NYPL. Throughout her career, Baker was active with the American Library Association, and chaired committees for the Newbery Medal and Caldecott Medal recognizing excellence in children’s literature.

In celebration of Baker’s birthday, we’re sharing The Golden Lynx and Other Tales, a collection of international folk tales compiled by Baker and illustrated by Austrian artist Johannes Troyer (1902-1969). This is the first edition of the book published in 1960 by J. B. Lippincott and is signed by Baker, who writes in the introduction, “No story has been included in this collection that has not stood the supreme test of the children’s interest and approval”.

Read other Milestone Monday posts here!

View more posts on children's books here.

– Jenna, Special Collections Graduate Intern

#Augusta Braxton Baker #Milestone Monday #The Golden Lynx and Other Tales #Johannes Troyer #J.B. Lippincott #New York Public Library #American Library Association #Newberry Medal #Caldecott Medal #Historical Curriculum Collection #birthdays

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detroitlib · 1 year

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From our picture files: "Assistant answers patron's question at ready reference desk...", from ALA Bulletin April 1968

#ALA #american library association #library #libraries #librarian #librarians #reference desk #1968 #1960s #books #reference books #library assistant #detroit public library

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ethanreedbooks · 9 hours

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Transformers Join Library Card Sign-Up Month Celebration!

Skybound Entertainment, the American Library Association (ALA), and Hasbro are teaming up to celebrate Library Card Sign-Up Month in September with an exciting collaboration featuring the beloved Transformers franchise, led by the iconic Optimus Prime.

ALA President Emily Drabinski expressed excitement about the partnership, highlighting the importance of libraries in fostering creativity and critical thinking skills for both Autobots and humans alike. Posters and bookmarks featuring Optimus Prime with a library card will be available in the ALA store, along with free Library Card Sign-up Month graphics and media tools to promote the initiative.

Arune Singh, VP of Brand and Editorial at Skybound Entertainment, emphasized the significance of libraries in communities, emphasizing the message of respect and inclusivity championed by Optimus Prime. Singh expressed Skybound's enthusiasm for collaborating with ALA to support local libraries and encourage reading among all sentient beings.

As part of the collaboration, Skybound and Image Comics will release new comic book and graphic novel collections based on the Transformers series throughout the year, commemorating the franchise's 40th anniversary with "40 Years. One Legacy." Additionally, a new graphic novel compendium series collecting the landmark Transformers series from Marvel Comics is set to launch in Fall 2024.

The partnership between Hasbro and Skybound, which began last summer, has revitalized the Transformers and G.I. Joe franchises with a new comic book series set in the Energon Universe. These include titles like "Void Rivals," "TRANSFORMERS," "Duke," and "Cobra Commander," with new limited series like "Scarlett" and "Destro" launching in June. These graphic novels are available in libraries nationwide, with more releases planned throughout the year.

#transformers #skybound universe #energon universe #books & libraries #american library association #image comics #optimus prime #skybound entertainment #skybound

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ebookporn · 1 year

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‘Our mission is crucial’: meet the warrior librarians of Ukraine

When Russia invaded Ukraine, a key part of its strategy was to destroy historic libraries in order to eradicate the Ukrainians’ sense of identity. But Putin hadn’t counted on the unbreakable spirit of the country’s librarians

by Stephen Marche

The morning that Russian bombs started falling on Kyiv, Oksana Bruy woke up worried about her laptop. Bruy is president of the Ukrainian Library Association and, the night before, she hadn’t quite finished a presentation on the new plans for the Kyiv Polytechnic Library, so she had left her computer open at work. That morning, the street outside her house filled with the gunfire of Ukrainian militias executing Russian agents. Missile strikes drove her into an underground car park with her daughter, Anna, and her cat, Tom. A few days, later she crept back into the huge empty library, 15,000sqft once filled with the quiet murmurings of readers. As she grabbed her laptop, the air raid siren sounded and she rushed to her car.

Thanks to that computer, Bruy could work. She didn’t return to her office; instead, she fled west to Lviv. “In all that time, from the first day of the full-scale war, I did not stop working,” she says. The library’s IT specialist lived in the neighbourhood. He kept the servers running and the employees connected. “So there was not a single day’s break in the work of the Kyiv Polytechnical Library, all this time, from 24 February.” The Russians have not shut her down. Oksana Bruy is winning her battle in the Ukrainian war. The libraries are open.

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readerupdated · 1 year

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The American Library Association (ALA) released the latest report on book challenges showing that 1,269 attempts to censor library books and resources were made in 2022, the highest number since ALA started collecting data 20 years ago.

Of the 2,571 unique titles targeted for censorship, the majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community and people of color.

58% of book challenges targeted books and materials in school libraries and 41% targeted materials in public libraries.

(via 2022 has marked a record high of requests to censor library books and materials)

#libraries #books #reader updated #american library association

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redgoldsparks · 1 year

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Gender Queer is the most banned book in the United States for the second year in a row, according to data collected by the American Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom.

#gender queer a memoir #Maia Kobabe #book bans #book challenges #american library association

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teenslib · 7 months

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#tumblarians #buffy the vampire slayer #rupert giles #american library association

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selfieignite · 10 months

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June 24, 2023

John Cho at the American Library Association Annual Conference & Exhibition and banquet in Chicago, Illinois. Signing his middle school novel, Troublemaker.

[x] [x] [x] [x] [x] [x]

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thebanishedreader · 6 months

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Florida banned porn in schools? Good for them.

Hi user!! Would you like to comment without hiding behind anonymity and tell me how these books are porn? Because they've also been banned from libraries and classrooms in Florida.

The Lion Children's Bible: Stories from the Old and New Testaments

The Usborne Book of Bible Stories

Noah's Ark: Words from the Book of Genesis

Read with Me Bible: An NIV Story Bible for Children

The Beginner's Bible: Timeless Bible Stories

The Christmas Story: According to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke from the King James Bible

The Easter Story: According to the Gospels of Matthew, Luke, and John from the King James Bible

Extreme Faith: Twelve Radical Young Believers from the Bible Who Changed Our World

And these are just 8 of the 1,402 titles that have been banned from libraries and classrooms in Florida in 2023. There are many more in a similar vein!! If you have more Bible Porn to share I would be interested to see!

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lisamarie-vee · 3 months

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#dolly parton #american library association #reading

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booksinmythorax · 2 months

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Created in collaboration with dozens of publishers, Unite Against Book Bans book résumés are easy-to-print documents that summarize a banned book’s significance and educational value, including a synopsis, reviews from professional journals, awards, accolades, and more. The book résumés also include information about how a title has been successfully retained in school districts in the face of demands to censor it. ALA officials said that the PDFs can be downloaded and printed for easy sharing with administrators, book review committees, and the public at local school and library board meetings.

This is fantastic news! Book banners in the United States often take quotes or sections of books wildly out of context for shock value in order to expedite or garner support for bans. This is in flagrant violation of the Miller test for obscenity, but they don't seem to care.

These book resumes are a great resource and template for library workers fighting book bans because they remind (good-faith) board members and other people in power of the book's value as a whole.

#librarians of tumblr #booklr #books & libraries #bookblr #librarians #public libraries #reading #school librarians #usamerican #ALA #american library association #book resumes

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