Open Letter to Knox County Schools Regarding Book Banning

Dear Ms. Searles:

I was shocked and saddened to see that Knox County Schools has published its list of 48 books that will be banned from school libraries in Knox County.  As a former librarian in the system (1982-1996), I believe this preemptive action by KCS represents a capitulation to the politically-backward and oppressive ideologues who must be rigorously opposed if the Right to Read, the Library Bill of Rights, and the freedom to think and intellectually and ethically grow are to be preserved in our public schools, which are our most vital laboratories of democracy.  

According to news stories, KCS librarians actively participated in this unethical capitulation and professional malfeasance by identifying books that they believe violate a nebulous and untested state statute that does not require the identification and expurgation of books by librarians. 

The American Library Association, the Association of School Librarians, and the Office of Intellectual Freedom all provide guidance for how to deal with censorious demands by astroturf groups like Moms for Liberty, who in fact represent the interests of anti-democratic influencers whose mission includes the destruction of democratic values in our communities and our country.

Librarians have an unambiguous professional responsibility and a moral duty to offer inclusive, quality collections and to refuse to engage in the expurgation of books. Librarians are obligated to protect the children and parents they serve and to resist efforts to violate the rights of their students (https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill/interpretations):

Access to Library Resources and Services Regardless of Sex, Gender Identity, Gender Expression, or Sexual Orientation: The American Library Association stringently and unequivocally maintains that libraries and librarians have an obligation to resist efforts that systematically exclude materials dealing with any subject matter, including sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation. Amended 2020

Access to Resources and Services in the School Library: The school library plays a unique role in promoting intellectual freedom. It serves as a point of voluntary access to information and ideas and as a learning laboratory for students as they acquire critical thinking and problem-solving skills needed in a pluralistic society. Although the educational level and program of the school necessarily shapes the resources and services of a school library, the principles of the Library Bill of Rights apply equally to all libraries, including school libraries. Amended 2014

. . . . Expurgation of Library Materials: Expurgating library materials is a violation of the Library Bill of Rights. Expurgation as defined by this interpretation includes any deletion, excision, alteration, editing, or obliteration of any part(s) of books or other library resources by the library, its agent, or its parent institution (if any). Amended 2014

 See Library Bill of Rights below:

LIBRARY BILL OF RIGHTS 

The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services.

I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation.

II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.

III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment.

IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas.

V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views.

VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use.

VII. All people, regardless of origin, age, background, or views, possess a right to privacy and confidentiality in their library use. Libraries should advocate for, educate about, and protect people’s privacy, safeguarding all library use data, including personally identifiable information.

Adopted June 19, 1939, by the ALA Council; amended October 14, 1944; June 18, 1948; February 2, 1961; June 27, 1967; January 23, 1980; January 29, 2019.

Inclusion of “age” reaffirmed January 23, 1996. 

Although the Articles of the Library Bill of Rights are unambiguous statements of basic principles that should govern the service of all libraries, questions do arise concerning application of these principles to specific library practices. See the documents designated by the Intellectual Freedom Committee as Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights.

Source: https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/librarybill

I believe that the Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 and the subsequent passage of Public Chapter 782 do not, in fact, require the most recent actions taken by Knox County Schools.  Rather, the identification of the 48 titles in KCS libraries represents a dangerous form of “submission in advance,” whereby legitimate institutions preemptively take self-censoring actions that serve to encourage the ignorant audacity of book banners to demand more and more titles be removed from library shelves.

There are many Tennessee citizens who are very upset by this latest bow to authoritarian demands. KCS should be aware that lawsuits are not the sole prerogative of angry fascists.

Sincerely,
James Horn, PhD

ec: Dr. Jon Rysewyk, Superintendent