An attack on libraries is an attack on free, unfettered access to information, an attack on literacy and lifelong learning, an attack on personal and community vitality, an attack on democracy, an attack on art, an attack on truth, an attack on human joy and connection.
It is bad enough that we (in the U.S.) saw more than 10,000 books banned during the 2023-24 school year, and that the federal government is dismantling the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Tomorrow, the Texas House of Representatives State Affairs Committee will debate HB3225, a mind-boggling piece of legislation that cracks down on access to (and the content within) public libraries.
In wild overreach, HB3225 fails to clearly define ‘sexually explicit,’ fails to differentiate between 3 and 13 and 16 year olds, and fails to offer parents an opt in or opt out option. HB3225 would force public libraries to surveill their entire collections and keep young people out of whole sections of every library in the state.
I remember when my girls got their library cards, and how proud they were, carrying the tall, wobbly stacks of books that they’d sound out, share, re-read and fall in love with. Those cards — those books — are part of the people they’ve become. Each generation of kids deserves that same head start, that same empowerment, that same thrill.
Haiku 13
April 13, 2025
The doors wide open,
stacks alive and generous:
we all belong here
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