WA’s most senior librarian gears up to fight censorship

The State Library of WA has declared war against attempts to censor library collections across the state.

In the wake of a campaign by a conservative advocacy group to restrict access to two sexual education books to over-16s, the State Library said in its recent annual report it would continue to resist censorship and support and defend intellectual freedoms.

Western Australia’s most senior librarian and State Library chief executive Catherine Clark said the campaign was an example of US-style pushes to censor collections, which she said was likely to occur more often but her organisation would resist it and help community libraries resist as well.

State Librarian and State Library WA chief executive Catherine Clark.Credit: LinkedIn/SLWA

“One of the basic principles of libraries is around intellectual freedom,” she said.

“I think anything that’s actually legal within society, we should be able to represent in our collections.

“I would love to say that it will fizzle out.

“I think if you go by what’s happened in the US, to some extent, what’s happening elsewhere in Australia, I think it will continue to pop up.”

In August, Keeping Children Safe Albany gathered 362 signatures on a petition calling for the books – Welcome to Sex by Yumi Stynes and Dr Mellissa Kang, and Sex: A Book for Teenagers by Nikol Hasler – to have their access restricted.

The group said the books contained details on how to do sexual acts and sexually graphic images that were not suitable for children.

The motions to restrict Welcome to Sex to over-16s and remove Sex: A Book for Teenagers until assessment by the Australian Classification Board were rejected 8-3 at a council meeting in late September.

Clark, who said the State Library actually didn’t have either book in its collection, said censorship of sexual education books could open the door for censorship in other areas.

“If we start censoring books like Welcome to Sex, which, for example, does touch on diverse sexualities, then we are we going to move on to censoring on the basis of race or religious affiliation or something else?” she said.

“We know that there are many young people who don’t feel comfortable at home talking about these issues.

“We hope that by presenting them with material that we know is accurate and appropriate for their age, they’re getting the information through this really credible source, rather than searching the internet and coming up with all sorts of different things.”

The state library board last year approved a new intellectual freedom policy that enshrined the organisation’s resistance to censorship efforts.

It is this policy that the State Library sends to community libraries, including the City of Albany, when they face issues around censorship.

“We have circulated that to all of the local governments, because it basically sets our stance as to why we believe intellectual freedom is really important for libraries,” she said.

“We really have been speaking with Albany to let them know that as a state organisation, we absolutely support the stance that they’ve made.

Keeping Children Safe Albany convenor Michelle Kinsella said her group never asked for book bans or censorship, only that the library move sexually explicit guides in the library out of the kindy section which the library did.

“Many parents share our concerns and the overwhelming support not only nationwide but international has been amazing,” she said.