I recently had the privilege to see censorship in action recently. Our library collection is heavily focused on student recommendations meaning that controversial books pop up from time to time. As librarians, it is our role to ensure that these books are put through a rigorous selection process – but what exactly does that entail?
According to the Dept of Education ” Direction for the management of controversial issues in schools” policy ( NSW DOE 2020) controversial issues are managed in the following ways
- Schools are neutral places for rational discourse and objective study.
- Discussion of controversial issues in schools should allow students to explore a range of viewpoints and not advance the interest of any particular group.
- Material presented to students as part of school programs and school activities should be:
- age appropriate
- sensitive to student needs
- relevant to the curriculum
- relevant to the school’s purpose and goals
- consistent with the core values outlined in Values in NSW public schools policy.
NSW Dept of Education Controversial Issues in Schools policy 2020
This leaves librarians in a rather awkward predicament – censorship and controversial ism is not without its personal bias. Even though a study by the American Association of School Librarians in 2010 stated found that school librarians are quite apt to identify there own self censorship nor where they subjectively influenced to self-censor during the selection process by internal beliefs or outside pressures, there is still some unknown internal bias’s that can be present during the selection process.
The NSW teachers federation also provides some direction in how controversial books can be approached in schools. It states that is supports teacher librarians and the Australian freedom to read act which states as follows
STATEMENT ON FREEDOM TO READ
The Australian Library and Information Association, believing that freedom can be protected in a democratic society only if its citizens have access to information and ideas through books and other sources of information, affirms the following principles as basic and distinctive of the obligations and responsibilities of the librarian:
- A primary purpose of a library service is to provide information through books and other media on all matters, which are appropriate to the library concerned.
- A librarian must protect the essential confidential relationship, which exists between a library user and the library.
- The functions of the librarian include: to promote the use of materials in the librarian’s care; to ensure that the resources of the library are adequate to its purpose; to obtain additional information from outside sources to meet the needs of readers; to cater for interest in all relevant facets of knowledge, literature and contemporary issues, including those of a controversial nature; but neither to promote or suppress particular ideas and beliefs.
- A Librarian, while recognising that powers of censorship exist and are legally vested in state and federal governments, should resist attempts by individuals or organised groups within the community to determine what library materials are to be, or are not to be, available to the users of the library.
- A librarian should not exercise censorship in the selection of materials by rejecting on moral, political, racial or religious grounds alone material which is otherwise relevant to the purpose of the library and meets the standards, such as historical importance, intellectual integrity, effectiveness of expression or accuracy of information which are required by the library concerned. Material should not be rejected on the grounds that its content is controversial or likely to offend some sections of the library’s community.
- A librarian should uphold the right of all Australians to have access to library services and materials and should not discriminate against users on the grounds of age, sex, race, religion, national origin, disability, economic condition, individual lifestyle or political or social views.
- A librarian must obey the laws relating to books and libraries, but if the laws or their administration conflict with the principles put forward in this statement, the librarian should be free to move for the amendment of these laws.
Australian Library and Information Association’s Statement on Freedom to Read 1971
These polices can be used by Teacher Librarians to form there own selection processes without fear of retribution. They also state that a teacher librarian should be aware of there community needs for appropriateness.
How does this relate to my original comment? Well, having a large manga collection in our library is not without its hits and misses as anyone would know. As I am not really a manga reader myself I rely strongly on recommendations from students – but I am very aware of the controversy that can sometime surround some of these titles and always check using two selection techniques.
- I check the category of manga for target audience – Shonen, Shoju and Kodomomuke are all targeted at teen males and females and young children
- I check the online content and future novels for inappropriate content. All manga can be read online and a quick check can save a lot of issues down the track.
Bibliography
NSW DOE. (2020, June 26). Controversial Issues in Schools : Direction for the management of controversial issues in schools. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://policies.education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/controversial-issues-in-school
Rickman, W. (n.d.). A Study of Self-Censorship by School Librarians. School Library Research. Retrieved March 22, 2021, from http://www.cala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/slr/vol13/SLR_StudyofSelf-Censorship_V13.pdf
Information for all Teacher Librarians. (2019, December 17). Retrieved March 22, 2021, from https://www.nswtf.org.au/pages/information-all-teacher-librarians
