United States: Reaching Out with Library Services for GLBTQ Teens

Abstract

Although major strides toward the inclusion of GLBT images in North American libraries have indeed been achieved, censorship is alive and well where children’s literature is concerned. Recent reports in Texas indicate that a library director has been subject to acts of criminal mischief for stocking positive-themed gay literature on library shelves (“Censorship Roundup,” 2004). In Alaska, a poster exhibit about gay elected officials raising no opposition while on display in district high schools has attracted hostility from local parents when mounted at the library (Aurand, 2004). And in South Dakota, Governor Mike Rounds demanded the shut down of a state library website for teens in order to remove “controversial” links (McCaffrey, 2004). Viewed against a backdrop in which these three states are among the top ten, in which gay couples are likely to have children (Gilgoff, 2004), it is plain to see that libraries have become a major battleground for the free flow of information about and for GLBTQ children and families. Fortunately, a new video resource, entitled Reaching Out: Library Services for GLBT&Q Teens (Lynne Barnes, Producer/Director, 2004), provides a cross-sectional examination of this debate and offers techniques for librarians to “reach out” to GLBTQ audiences. The educational video, only 16 minutes in length, presents the perspectives of youth, writers and librarians on this most important issue. It begins as GLBTQ students share their experiences of verbal abuse, severe isolation, and the challenges of staying in school. These contributions are juxtaposed against their perceptions of the role libraries