Dangers of School Book Silencing

Ellie Creamer for the Guardian newspaper reports that more than two dozen school librarians in the UK have been asked to remove books – many of which are LGBTQ+ titles – from school library shelves, according to new survey data. The Index on Censorship survey found that 28 of 53 librarians polled – 53% – said that they had been asked to remove books. In more than half of those cases books were taken off shelves.  Censorship is “definitely something that there’s quite a lot of concern about from some of our members”, said Alison Tarrant, chief executive of the School Library Association (SLA), which helped administer the survey along with the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals.  Ms Tarrant noted that in the main, the complaints about queer and other progressive books came from people outside the school community, through people radicalised into religious fervour, for example.  There could also be a level of self-censorship, Tarrant said. Though nobody has told her this directly, it might be the case that certain books are not being bought in the first place to avoid complaints being made.  “It is troubling to see reports that LGBTQ+ books are being removed from school libraries as we know that many students find great importance and reassurance in seeing themselves reflected in books and media”, said a representative from LGBTQ+ rights charity Stonewall. “Preventing LGBTQ+ young people from seeing themselves represented in inclusive resources and books at school can often make them feel ashamed and feel the need to hide who they are.”