Library Board Explains Policy

Dear Editor,

The undersigned members of the Hamilton East Public Library (HEPL) Board of Trustees would like to correct the misinformation that is being circulated in print and in the media about the revised Collection Policy and the current review of books in the children and teen section of the library.

We are NOT censoring, NOT banning and NOT hiding any books. Nor are we telling the Librarian what books to purchase.

We are moving books that are age-inappropriate for the location that the Librarians chose to put them. These books will be moved into the general collection of the library, which is accessible by all card holders. This policy will be used with all books purchased in the future.

The HEPL library card provides any user at any age full access to all sections of the library. It is not possible to “hide” books in the library. All books can be found in the online library catalog from the website or at computer access points in the libraries. Part of the review effort is to ensure they are correctly cataloged.

The selection criteria for these moves have been approved by legal counsel and are in line with constitutional requirements for a public library. Equating moving books based on public, objective criteria is not censorship and case law supports this.

The cost of moving these books is the price we have to pay to correct actions that were taken in the past. These costs are currently under Board review.

Laura Alerding, President

Micah Beckwith

Tiffanie A. H. Ditlevson

Dr. Ray Maddalone, Secretary