Banning books now easier at Dothan Houston Co. Library
DOTHAN, Ala (WDHN) — Under new changes announced Wednesday, it will become easier to move or remove books from the shelves of the Dothan Houston County Library System.
The library’s Board of Trustees Wednesday approved new restrictions that will make it easier to completely ban some books and move other books behind the circulation desk where access will have to be mediated by a staff member.
The way the new changes read, even if a book has great value overall, if it contains graphic illustrations or depicts sex acts that the library thinks are unnecessary, then the book can be banned.
The board’s new policy adds more restrictive language, emphasizing that books “that contain graphic and gratuitous illustrations or depictions of sexual acts, unnecessary to the work taken as a whole, will not become part of the collection.”
Chris Warren, the Director of the Dothan Houston County Library System, said, “the new policies that are in place will hopefully address some, or a number of concerns, that we’ve heard from patrons about explicit content in the library collection.”
The library is also going to start putting some books in a “limited access” category, moving them behind the circulation desk, and only allowing people 19 and older to access them.
They say this will apply to books that include what they categorize as “visually explicit depictions of people engaged in sexual activity.”
“Some books do deal with those things in more explicit ways than others, which is why we’ve created this special collection category,” said Warren.
The library is also going to start giving people a chance to appeal if they complain about a library book, but it remains on the shelf or they aren’t happy about the decision.
The revised policy now states that after someone complains about the content of a book or requests a book be removed, three library employees will review the book in question, then make a recommendation to the library director. The director will then decide whether to leave the book where it is, reclassify it and move it to a different part of the library, or remove it from the library altogether.
“Librarians are also cognizant of the fact that something that might be objectionable to one person, might be very meaningful to someone else. So, we look at this process through that lense, and we’re able to make very thoughtful and very conscientious decisions about how we approach this process, ” said Warren.
Under the new changes, a patron who is unhappy with the decision can now appeal it directly to the Executive Committee of the Dothan Houston County Library System of Board of Trustees.
All appeals must be sent in written form within ten days of the director’s decision and must give specific details as to why they believe the decision was wrong.
Although the new restrictions create new ways for books to be restricted , the library says it will consider all viewpoints before deciding whether a book should remain or be reclassified or be removed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WDHN - wdhn.com.
