MY TURN: Locking up books
The suggestion made at the Aug. 15 Community Library Network board of trustees meeting represents a troubling assault on intellectual freedom and the role of libraries in society. Trustee Plass's proposal to lock up certain books from the adult collection to protect minors from potential harm is a misguided attempt to impose moral censorship and control over the free exchange of ideas.
First and foremost, libraries serve as bastions of knowledge and discovery, offering a wide array of materials to cater to the diverse needs and interests of the community. The notion that books intended for adults should be locked away due to the possibility that minors might access them undermines the very purpose of a library. It suggests that some knowledge or perspectives are too dangerous to be freely available, which is a slippery slope toward censorship and the suppression of ideas. This approach not only insults the intelligence and responsibility of parents but also undermines the trust placed in adults to make informed decisions about what they and their children read.
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