Northern Onondaga Public Library (NOPL) [13212] [13039] [13029] | Non-specific policy | "Meeting rooms may not be used for [...] Partisan political activities" |
Boston Public Library (BPL) [02116] | Non-specific policy | "the provision of meeting room space is not the primary mission of the Library, and must always be subordinate to the paramount need to provide a safe, peaceful, and respectful environment in which to read and study." |
Cambridge Public Library [02138] | Yes, this is a trusted library | "will not tolerate hate speech directed at patrons or staff. Hate speech is [...] an incitement to hatred primarily against a group of persons defined in terms of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and the like." |
TRUSTED LIBRARIES
We advocate for library workers to take an active role in maintaining libraries as trusted and inclusive spaces where people from all backgrounds and experiences can engage with each other respectfully.
We define a Trusted Library to be one that protects the human rights of vulnerable community members through explicitly committing to prioritize their safety and access needs over the desires of those who wish to do them harm.
In the service of this ideal, we believe written policies should specify that library use is open to everyone except those who threaten violence against library staff or patrons through physical intimidation or openly espousing the ideologies of white supremacy, white nationalism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, or eugenics.
ADD YOUR LIBRARY
Link us to your local library's behavior and meeting room policies on hate speech and hate groups and we'll add the data. The more submissions we get, the easier it will be for vulnerable community members to locate trusted spaces.
If your library doesn't meet the criteria to be a safer space, see our tips for encouraging improvements to library policy. If you're having trouble, please feel free to contact us so we can work with you.
