Marlborough Libraries don’t censor books just because someone takes offense

Marlborough Libraries won’t censor content just because someone takes offense to it – a warning not to judge a book by its cover.

According to Glenn Webster, Marlborough District Libraries Manager, there is a lot of different content that people think shouldn’t be on the shelves, but ultimately the libraries’ policy allows staff to keep it on display .

Webster presented the 2022 Libraries Collection Policy to councilors last week.

The policy, revised every two years, outlined how the library planned and developed its collection – both physical and digital.

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“The policy helps customers understand the libraries’ content development and management policies,” Webster said.

“And sometimes it’s used to clarify the position of libraries if a customer is unsure or unhappy with the content of a title in our collection.”

The policy underlined the libraries’ commitment to freedom to read and access information within the framework of the law established by the Films, Videos and Publications Classification Act 1993 and the Act 1994 on copyright.

He said they would not delete or remove material simply because someone finds it offensive. Also, the documents would not be marked or identified to show approval or disapproval of their content, according to the policy.

Webster turned to the young adult novel In the riverby Ted Dawe as an example.

The award-winning book was briefly banned in New Zealand in 2015, following a complaint. The interim ban made it a crime to supply, display or distribute the book.

The novel, aimed at a teenage audience, was about a Maori boy from the rural east coast who wins a scholarship to attend an exclusive boys’ school in Auckland where he is bullied. The book contains sexual activity, drug use, and offensive language.

The ban was later lifted, with the chairman of the New Zealand Film and Literature Board saying he believed the censor’s actions were “unlawful”.

The ban was appealed because the book was believed to have value as an educational resource, Webster said.

Speaking after last week’s meeting, Webster said people still have their own “sense” about what content is appropriate for the library.

“A kindergarten teacher once came to me about a picture book, and she thought we should take it down because the driver of a car wasn’t wearing a seatbelt,” said- he declared.

“It was really interesting. We didn’t feel the need to [remove it].”

He said some young adult books could be “close to the bone”, and often children with better reading comprehension could reach them.

“It’s important that people read what the book is about, and not just judge a book by the cover,” he said.

“Some of the content in this material may not be what parents want their children to read at this age,” he said.

“That’s where we say in the policy, it’s up to the parents or the carers to decide. They are ultimately responsible for the books their child brings home.

He said the library examines the collection almost daily and systematically reviews reports to ensure that its roughly 120,000 items are indeed removed.

“A lot of times we find that the stock, when it first comes in, obviously moves quite quickly, so there’s going in and out and in and out. It gets to a certain stage where it only comes out once or twice a year, or eventually it doesn’t come out at all,” he said.

“This is where we assess the collection for its relevance and timeliness. Maybe the reason it’s not coming out is that it’s in really bad shape, or it’s obsolete – and we have new material on that sort of thing.

He did not foresee the size of the Blenheim collection increasing, even with the new library due to open later this year.

“The library is more than collections of books. It’s a meeting place, it’s a learning experience,” he said.

“We’re just going to refresh the collection, and obviously we’re going to be thinking about new books.”

While the new 2022 policy wasn’t too different from previous ones, he thought it brought it “up to date”.

“We also now have better access to digital collections,” he said.

“So we just wanted to make sure that this policy affected all of our visual media and our digital media.”