[LAW-LIB:56555] RE: Sarah Palin and Libraries

From: David P. Dillard (jwne@temple.edu)
Date: Fri Sep 05 2008 - 01:36:05 PDT

  • Next message: Kevin Shelton: "[LAW-LIB:56556] RE: Sarah Palin and Libraries"

    Censorship is both a library and a legal issue. Firing a librarian for
    failure to conform to a call to censor from a political leader is a
    critically important legal issue of importance to all librarians.

    POLITICS: ELECTIONS AND ELECTION CAMPAIGNS:
    Palins Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual
    <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Net-Gold/message/24943>

    Censoring a fellow librarian for posting information regarding such
    censorship is not a part of the nature of librarianship with which I am
    familiar, the idea of librarians as providers of information. Is there a
    reason why some of the professionals in a profession that fights the
    banning of books have members who argue for the banning of messages from
    discussion groups of librarians because messages are viewed as advocating
    a political point of view in a matter pertinent to libraries and library
    practice?

    Sincerely,
    David Dillard
    Temple University
    (215) 204 - 4584
    jwne@temple.edu
    <http://daviddillard.businesscard2.com>
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    On Thu, 4 Sep 2008, Stephanie Huthmacher wrote:

    > Spoken like a true member of the legal profession...
    >
    >
    >
    > I, too, am a legal librarian. I find the banning of books repulsive and
    > any intrusion into ones personal library records abhorrent.
    >
    > Perhaps if parents were to talk to their children, or pop their heads
    > into their rooms once in a while, they could get an idea on what the
    > kids are doing, rather than relying on the librarian to monitor
    > behavior.
    >
    >
    >
    > If you don't like a book, don't read it - if you don't like a movie,
    > don't watch it. No one holds a gun to anyone's heading forcing them to
    > do anything they find offensive. Time to take responsibility for your
    > own actions without impinging on the rights of others...
    >
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > Stephanie N. Huthmacher, MLS
    >
    > 42 Delaware Avenue, Suite 120
    >
    > Buffalo, New York 14202-3924
    >
    > Phone: 716.849.1333 ext. 330
    >
    > Fax: 716.855.1580
    >
    > E-mail: shuthmacher@lglaw.com
    >
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > ________________________________
    >
    > From: owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu [mailto:owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu] On
    > Behalf Of Frye, Nanna
    > Sent: Thursday, September 04, 2008 4:42 PM
    > To: Library; law-lib@ucdavis.edu
    > Subject: [LAW-LIB:56539] RE: Sarah Palin and Libraries
    >
    >
    >
    > Ah, but you did inject partisan politics into it, Paula, by the
    > manner in which you related these facts. Is anyone in doubt as to your
    > position on Sarah Palin after reading your posting? You certainly did
    > not supply both sides of the story. Reasonable minds could differ on
    > the legislation you mentioned below on whether parents could learn about
    > the books their children are borrowing from a library. If your teenage
    > child has been moody and you discover a library book on suicide in the
    > teenager's room, shouldn't you be able to find out if the child had
    > borrowed other books on suicide? Many would say "yes." Was the
    > censoring a blanket act that applied to adults and children or just to
    > children? Are we talking about literary books or titillating junk
    > novellas that Palin wanted to censor? Again, we don't have both sides
    > of the story. After many, many years of working for a court, it is very
    > rare when there are not two sides to a story.
    >
    >
    >
    > I will reserve judgment until I have ALL of the facts. I would
    > prefer that we avoid political postings on law-lib about the
    > presidential election even if they do allegedly deal with "library
    > topics."
    >
    > Nanna Frye, Law Librarian
    > Court of Appeal
    > San Diego, CA
    >
    >
    >
    >
    >
    > ________________________________
    >
    > From: owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu [mailto:owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu] On
    > Behalf Of Library
    > Sent: Thursday, September 04, 2008 10:54 AM
    > To: law-lib@ucdavis.edu
    > Subject: [LAW-LIB:56536] Sarah Palin and Libraries
    >
    > I know this isn't the place for partisan politics and I'm not going to
    > discuss what I think of Sarah Palin's positions on abortion or foreign
    > policy or whether polar bears belong on the Endangered Species Act. But
    > she did try to censor books in the Wasilla Public Library and she did
    > try to fire the librarian for not agreeing to do so. And she did support
    > a bill in the legislature that would have forced librarians to tell
    > parents what books their children had checked out of the library.
    >
    > I thought, as librarians, you might want to know her position on
    > libraries and censorship.
    > There is a well documented anti-Palin librarian's web site that
    > discusses this. issues:http://librariansagainstpalin.wordpress.com/
    >
    > Paula Lichtenberg, Librarian
    > Keker & Van Nest LLP, San Francisco
    >
    >



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