Imagine a library patron approaching you with an item and challenging its inclusion in the collection. What do you do? It's very important that you know your library's process for handling a challenge before you are confronted with this. For example, you may be required to escalate the complaint to a supervisor, give the complainant a complaint form to fill out, or an email address to contact.
It is good practice for every library to have a procedure for reviewing challenged material. Approach your supervisor or manager and ask them about the process for handling a complaint about an item. If your library doesn't have a process, it's time to create one!
See the resources below for forms you can use as a template, adapted from Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa National Library of New Zealand's Services to Schools.
Having a procedure in place for complaints reassures the community that their opinions and concerns are valued, and their voice is being heard. Good communication is key, and having these procedures written into policy gives the community an outlet to express themselves. Libraries stand for key democratic principles, and one of these is hearing and acknowledging the voices of local citizens.
Complaints processes also empower staff with a pathway to know how to handle these situations and follow the necessary steps in the case of confrontation. Handling a complaint well, that is fair and consistent, is likely to prevent escalation.
Different types of libraries have different governance structures. For example, public libraries in Aotearoa are generally run by local and district councils, whereas an academic library is typically run by a tertiary institution it is part of. School libraries are governed by school boards of trustees.
The governance of your organisation will impact the library's strategic direction which can influence what collection policies say. It is useful to know your governance structure if challenged. Sometimes, it may be appropriate to escalate a challenge to the broader organisation instead.
Link your collection policy with the strategy of your governing body. This could be your council's long-term plan, or the school or universities strategic directions. Aligning the library's policies in this way gives collection decisions support, justification, and validity. It can be useful to point to this connection when decisions are challenged.
For example, the Auckland Libraries Collection Development Policy is committed to mātauranga Māori as principle 5.2, linking to Auckland Council's Auckland Plan 2050's outcome of Māori Identity and Wellbeing.
LIANZA has a statement on freedom of information, and other international statements can also be useful. Have these in a readily accessible place so you can consult them if needed.
Here are some examples of responses you can have ready in case someone challenges an item in your collection. Some of these are taken from Unite Against Book Bans and Auckland Libraries Collection Policy.
We try to have an inclusive collection which represents the diversity of our community. As such we hold a variety of different viewpoints and topics, respecting people's right of freedom of information.
We do not remove books from our collection on the basis of causing offence or being morally objectionable.
We trust individuals to make their own decisions about what they read and believe.
We recognise that there will be disagreements over certain content. However, we don't make individual decisions for other readers about what is appropriate.
Our collections team assesses and places material into age-appropriate collections. Parents and caregivers are responsible for their child's selection and viewing of library materials.
If you believe an item should be restricted or banned, you can contact the Te Mana Whakaatu Classification Office.
If you'd like to make a complaint about this item, you can[insert complaints procedure: fill out this form, contact this email.]
It is best practice for your library to have some form of register for reporting complaints. All official complaints should be handled as part of the process outlined in policy documents. However, it is still valuable to have a register of sorts where you can note informal complaints. This can be instances where a person has spoken to a staff member, made a comment on social media, or sent a message or email challenging the validity of an item in the collection, without taking up the offer to go through the official complaints channel. Having a list of this is also a way to keep track of trends in censorship challenges.
Ask if your library, or the library association your library is aligned with keeps a register of book challenges.
An example is the American Library Association (ALA) who keep a register of challenges coded by the following categories:
Materials Challenge (books, movies, magazines, digital content)
Internet-Related Challenge (filtering, access, use policies)
Library Service (meeting rooms, programs, displays, exhibits, author visits)
Patron Privacy or Confidentiality Issue (circ. records, PII)
Hate Crime (defacement of library property to target a specific group; use of swastikas or other symbols of intimidation)
Threats or Harassment to Staff (online, by phone, by email, or in-person)
Legislative Concerns (including executive orders and A.G. opinions)
Other (including 1st Amendment audits and student publications).
