Imagine that you are a 17-year-old (or even younger), living in a conservative (often hostile) household and/or where any discussion of your sexuality is forbidden. For many members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transexual/Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) community this is a disheartening and painful reality, so where do they go to learn about themselves and find solace in personal accounts echoing their own: the public library. The public library interacts with the LGBTQ community in three core ways: (1) LGBTQ employees; (2) LGBTQ patrons; (3) LGBTQ opposition. Over the years, libraries have vacillated between the suppressive and the progressive; in light of this, libraries still play an integral role in educating the public on LGBT issues for better or for worse.
In the 1970s, the LGBTQ community faced a disparaging relationship with public libraries, with almost no LGBTQ-centric collections, minimal service (forced upon even LGBTQ librarians), and having Homosexuality-related works listed under “sexual perversion.” The American Library Association (ALA) acted progressively in 1970 by forming the Gay Liberation Task Force of SRRT (Social Responsibilities Round Table); their mission was to improve services to the LGBTQ community and open access to LGBTQ materials. The task force was met with opposition; one such instance concerns the remarks of David K. Berninghausen, director of the now closed University of Minnesota Library School, where he argued that the ALA had no right promoting the Homosexual lifestyle or meddling in social issues. Conversely, the argument was made that the ALA was not promoting a lifestyle, but providing a “politically and socially marginalized population” with access to quality information (Joyce, 2008). The ALA continues to be progressive and proactive by putting national conferences in cities without discriminatory laws against the LGBTQ community and have pushed for a growth in LGBTQ collections and archives (James V. Carmichael, 1998).
Norman G. Kester illustrates the importance of access to LGBTQ materials by stating, “Books—reading and the pursuit of discovering who I am as a black gay man and librarian—brought me to libraries and librarianship…I recall the incredible joy I found reading these writings: I was so overwhelmed I wanted to tell someone how important it was to find these ideas in a public library” (Kester, 1997). A multi-cultural and socially diverse library affects us all, but is even more important for those who cannot afford to secretly buy materials at the bookstore or who cannot keep these materials at home for fear of a severe punishment from violence to abandonment. This is one of the most serious issues for librarians, and for the LGBTQ community it can mean life or death; lack of such materials and feelings of alienation have led to an unfortunate number of suicides. With this in mind, making quality LGBTQ materials private and easily accessible becomes not only a Librarian’s concern, but a Human one as well.
Discussion: Is it possible for neutrality and LGBTQ concerns to co-exist within public libraries?
James V. Carmichael, J. (1998). Homosexuality and United States libraries: Land of the free, but not home to the gay. from http://www.ifla.org/IV/ifla64/002-138e.htm
Joyce, S. (2008). A few gates redux: an examination of the social responsibilities debate in the early 1970s and 1990s. In A. Lewis (Ed.), Questioning library neutrality: Essays from Progressive Librarian (pp. 33-66). Duluth: Library Juice Press.
Kester, N. G. (1997). Out and proud in the public library. In N. G. Kester (Ed.), Liberating minds: the stories and professional lives of gay, lesbian, and bisexual librarians and their advocates (pp. 182-189). Jefferson: McFarland and Company, Inc.
5 comments:
I think that it is absolutely essential that members of the LGBTQ community have a safe and non-biased place to find accurate information. Having a close friend who is very involved in the LGBTQ community on the faculty level, I have heard countless stories of students who, when they come out to their parents, are cut off completely, with no money for school, housing, food, or car insurance, let alone support and kindness.
Until October of this year at my undergraduate school, those students had nowhere to turn except friends who were accepting of their sexuality and a few faculty members who worked to keep them from having to drop out of school. Having a library with accurate, up-to-date, and confidential information and services is absolutely vital to the survival of the community as a whole and as these young people in particular. As long as there are people willing to work together, of course libraries can serve this sector of the community. We have come so far in providing this for other groups, we can do it for this group as well.
I do believe it is possible for the two to coexist. This is when it is again important for the community to understand the mission of the library. They must be informed that all members of society are to be served with information. This will of course include materials that some may find offensive but it would be grossly unfair to serve one part of the community and ignore the other.
I think that there are opportunities for libraries to be neutral. An option for supplying material that may be prone to opposition is to create a “social issues” collection. This would make materials available to everyone under the preface of education, not promoting or condoning. In this collection “touchy” topics (such as sexuality, drugs, self image, suicide) that adolescence often cannot talk to their parents about would be available. This collection, while aimed at youth, would be beneficial for anyone that wishes to learn about these topics whether for research or for personal reasons.
@ Stephanie Y.
Personally, I am hesitant to lump LGBTQ issues with the social issues you mentioned. Yes, LGBTQ issues are social issues, as are Racism, Sexism, etc. and often times they are intertwined with the other problems you mentioned like drug abuse and suicide.
Moreover, I think that is part of the problem; we need to stop seeing LGBTQ as an issue--at least not generally speaking. For example, pregnancy is a Heterosexual issue, but being Heterosexual is not. In the same way, gay marriage is an issue, but being LGBTQ should not.
In addition, lumping drugs, suicide, etc. with being LGBTQ sends more negative messages. Drug abuse and suicide are deviant behaviors and are harmful, but the message we should be sending is that being LGBTQ is no different from Heterosexuality.
Here's why neutrality is problematic. If we offer unbiased LGBTQ information, we're being liberal. On the other hand, if we offer information in the aforementioned "lumping" manner or not at all, we are supporting the traditional view that the LGBTQ lifestyle falls short of "normal" or "desired."
Perhaps we should not be striving for neutrality at all. By their very nature, libraries are progressive institutions. The idea of allowing equal educational opportunities free of cost through public schools and libraries was extremely progressive in the beginning, and still is in some parts of the world.
The essence of education, which is the base of a library, is to learn new ideas. After learning those ideas, it is up to the individual to agree or disagree with what he or she has learned. As long as learning new ideas and being educated is considered progressive/liberal, libraries will be considered progressive/liberal as well. We do not need to present any information in terms of "bad" or "good", but we do need to have the information readily available, and not separated from the majority of library materials.
People are not carbon copies of each other. We each have different religions, cultures, political views, personalities, families, etc, and we can use library materials to learn more about ourselves and one another. To take materials on the LGBTQ community and choose not to carry them or to place them in an area devoted to "issues" would be no different than not carrying materials related to Judaism or African-Americans or Republicans. As a place to learn, it just doesn't make sense for a library to do this. If that makes us progressive and not neutral, so be it.
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