How book-banning campaigns have changed the lives and education of librarians – they now need to learn how to plan for safety and legally protect themselves; The Conversation, July 20, 2023

Nicole A. Cooke Baker Endowed Chair and Professor of Library and Information Science, University of South Carolina, The Conversation ; ; How book-banning campaigns have changed the lives and education of librarians – they now need to learn how to plan for safety and legally protect themselves

"Library professionals maintain that books are what education scholar Rudine Sims Bishop called the “mirrors, windows and sliding glass doors” that allow readers to learn about themselves and others and gain empathy for those who are different from them. 

The drive to challenge, ban or censor books has not only changed the lives of librarians across the nation. It’s also changing the way librarians are now educated to enter the profession. As a library school educator, I hear the anecdotes, questions and concerns from library workers who are on the front lines of the current fight and are not sure how to react or respond. 

What once, and still is, a curriculum that includes book selection, program planning and serving diverse communities in the classroom, my faculty colleagues and I are now expanding to include discussions and resources on how students, once they become professional librarians, can physically, legally and financially protect themselves and their organizations."