Library Shenanigans

Dear Editor,

As a Kent Memorial Library Commission member, I would like to offer some thoughts for the community. There has been much toxic and divisive rhetoric about the library, and it’s time the residents of Suffield hear another perspective. Conservative members of the commission are not “pro-censorship” and “anti-First Amendment” as has been accused. Legitimate concerns have been raised over recent years about the library’s practices and collection decisions. The American Library Association opposes all restrictions based on age. This has allowed for grotesquely detailed, erotic and sexually explicit content to be available in the children’s department at KML, both in written form and illustrated form. Professional librarians across the state have recognized that these books belong in the adult section. That is not censorship. That is librarianship. Additionally, left unchecked and unquestioned, KML was becoming a center for left-wing political and social activism, including in the children’s department. The duty to present all sides of current and controversial issues has been neglected, and one viewpoint has been favored in purchasing and display decisions. How many books are available in the children’s department about liberal Supreme Court Justice Kentaji Brown Jackson? Three, often on display. How about conservative Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett or Clarence Thomas? None. The Obamas? Over a dozen. President Trump? One. Many members of the commission would like to see balance in KML’s collection, displays, and programs, and common-sense decisions in the children’s department. Enough with the shenanigans.