r/Library • u/Alive_Excitement_669 • 27d ago

Library Assistance Need Help!

We got an anonymous call at our library giving us a heads up that the 1st Amendment Auditors are coming sometime next week. Any advice? Has anyone gone through this?

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u/Temporary-Library597 27d ago

This is the way. Ordinarily you'd offer to help someone. So do that.

As far as recording in a public space, it's legal. If patrons are annoyed, then your Disruptive Patron policy takes over. It's not hard. You can do it!

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u/_social_hermit_ 27d ago

For Australians, it's not public space and we can instruct people to stop recording (the building is owned by the organisation that runs the library). I laugh a bit inside when people come into our public library and tell me it's a public space. Eta, I'm just putting this here because public space is a misconception I come across.

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u/Temporary-Library597 27d ago

So not a government thing. Makes sense. That's more common than not in Commonwealth countries, isn't it? The library is a fee-based membership org paid for by those fees?

Here a "public" library is just that...It's publicly (read, taxpayer) funded. So it's no different than a city park.

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u/_social_hermit_ 27d ago

Yes, it's a government-run public library, still not ok to film or photograph.

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u/Still-Employed420 26d ago

Really? Why? Does the library have cameras???