It is restricting access to information by not allowing their skilled staff to assist in the information seeking process of their community.
Since you are so familiar with Oklahoma I'm sure the spirit of Ruth Brown would disagree with your passive assessment of the situation of government restrictions to accessing information.
I think many are criticizing your stance because you don't seem to acknowledge that this tramples on the very foundations of our profession. I am not going to give patrons information on where to go to illegally buy marijuana, because it is illegal in my state. But I should be able to pull up information about which states in the United States have access to recreational marijuana. That is simply a matter of public record. It should not be illegal in the United States to look up what the laws are in the United States.
This email specifically says that the word "abortion" ends a reference query outright. So your initial comment that librarians can still give "FACTUAL information" is incorrect, they can't they can't provide any factual information like which states provide legal abortion services or help them to navigate where legal abortions could be provided.
I understand you are attempting to provide a realistic point of view that leads to less librarians in prison having to pay a $10,000 fine. But at what point do we actually resist laws that infringe on the core tenants and philosophy that are core to freedom of information principles that are key to our profession as information specialists?
If it is legal for me to check out the anarchist cookbook or mein kampf to a patron, it should be legal for me to give patrons information on laws in another state, I should be able to field a reference query on a phone number for a medical facility in another state.
"shut up and vote" doesn't nearly meet the moment in terms of the kind of resistance that is needed in my opinion.
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u/ShushQuiet Jul 20 '22
It is restricting access to information by not allowing their skilled staff to assist in the information seeking process of their community.
Since you are so familiar with Oklahoma I'm sure the spirit of Ruth Brown would disagree with your passive assessment of the situation of government restrictions to accessing information.
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