As of late, there has been a steady increase in the banning and censorship of books all across America. Over the course of the 2023-2024 school year alone, 10,000 titles were challenged within U.S. schools, according to a PEN America survey. Not only has the amount of censorship increased, but as has the pressure on libraries.
In a speech during an anti-book-ban rally in Glenwood Springs on Saturday, Oct. 19, Garfield County Libraries Executive Director Jamie LaRue stated, “In essence there is a rise in challenges attempting to restrict and remove access to library resources. The American Library Association has reported the number of titles targeted for censorship increased 65% in 2023, which is the highest level documented in over 20 years.”
The rally was organized by local grassroots group Protect Our GarCo Libraries in collaboration with the library district as part of the American Library Association’s Freedom to Read Day of Action. There were 150 events in 40 states that same day.
For 18 years, the Garfield County Library Board of Trustees has essentially been responsible for appointing new members and general direction of the libraries. Historically, members of the library board have maintained a rather apolitical outlook and appointments have been made based on an applicant’s role in the community rather than their political identity.
Recently, the Board of County Commissioners has taken it upon themselves to appoint or remove library board members. This compromises the apolitical structure of the libraries that has been established for years. As of late, the community has been fighting to keep the library a pure hub of authentic information, stories and history.
“The job of the library is to tell the human story,” LaRue stated. “That means we have to tell everyone’s story. Very often, people … are seeking to restrict other people’s access to library materials. It’s like saying we can only tell ‘my’ story. And I believe that diminishes what we are capable of as individuals and capable of as communities.”
To be able to speak freely and share stories is fundamental to development and learning. People are coming together to fight for the right of Americans to teach and learn about the immense diversity of the human experience in its most raw forms. And that is what is being challenged to this day.
In Garfield County, as well as several other parts of Colorado, libraries have faced various forms of censorship and restriction over the past few years. For years the library has stayed out of politics, providing resources of knowledge and various perspectives unbound by restrictive policies. I see that as a valuable and essential community service.
On Oct. 19, community members concerned with government control and censorship got together to sign a petition against the commissioner’s imposition of the library board appointment process. These people came together for what they believe is right.
As Colorado Representative Elizabeth Velasco stated during the Oct. 19 rally, “It is so important that we don’t ban books and continue to celebrate diversity. I’m very excited for this event today and seeing a community show up and say that that is not what they want.”
There is an abundance of people all over the world who share a variety of experiences and upbringings which we all can learn from and connect over. This rally brought people together in regards to celebrating our first amendment right and people’s access to information and the education within that.
People are standing together, exercising their freedom of assembly, for the right to read and ensure their words and the words of others remain available to share without the inhibition of censorship. Countless people from the Valley came together to keep the libraries we know and love autonomous and maintain the same standards that have made the system flourish for years.