Chief Librarian at Medicine Hat Public Library concerned about impact of Bill 28

“There is no automated or easy way to review these materials. It will take significant staff time to do this,” he added.

“Some collections, like DVDs, are essentially impossible to review. There is no consistent external rating system available, and we just can’t go through thousands of hours of video looking for explicit content.”

He said libraries would also need to create secure storage areas or redesign spaces to control access to restricted materials, despite having no additional provincial funding to support those changes.

“Once materials are identified, they must be locked away from public access. We will have to build secure shelving or rooms; we have neither the space nor the budget to do so,” Feser said.

“It will not be sufficient to place items behind a counter as the Province has suggested; we don’t have room, and our counters are not always staffed,” he added.

“The retrieval process will take additional staff time. Some collections, like DVDs, are too large to be secured and may have to be eliminated. “

Feser warned the restrictions could dramatically reduce access to materials for both youth and adults, arguing that requiring patrons to request materials directly from staff could discourage use.

“Restricted items will disappear from view. Youth under 16 will have no access. Even adults will have to identify themselves and ask staff for materials. We know from experience that these types of barriers will drive usage of these materials to near zero,” Feser said.

“The invisibility of materials plus the inconvenience and stigma of asking for access will kill demand,” he added.

“Burying a book is nearly as effective as burning it.”

He also said one possible approach would be restricting youth under 16 from entering adult areas of the library.

“This would be much easier to implement, and it is how some American libraries have responded to similar regulations. We would not need to review our adult collections, and adult access would not be blocked,” Feser said.

“DVDs could also remain in our collection. However, cutting off youth access to adult collections and spaces would be devastating,” he added.

“No youth access would mean walls, turnstiles, or other barriers to keep youth out. This will once again cost money we don’t have budgeted, and will block the openness and river views that beautify our space.”

He adds that emergency access and egress would have to be worked out, and staff, or technology would be needed to control who gets into these previously open spaces.

Adults would have to identify themselves and verify their age to enter.

“Youth would be cut off from the majority of our collections, and left with limited options in the children’s and young adult collections,” Feser said.

“Youth who use our spaces for safe shelter would be confined to the Children’s Library, which contains little of interest to a 15-year-old; the result could be conflict between families and these youth, or the youth’s abandonment of the library for less positive environments,” he added.

“Our award-winning Honeycomb House would become inaccessible to the majority of youth who use it.”

According to Feser, the changes could also affect library services, including holds, interlibrary loans and membership systems.

Feser said less than one per cent of library materials contain images that could be considered explicit and argued that those materials are generally part of broader works with educational, artistic or scientific value.

“These are legitimate materials that are wanted by people in our community,” Feser said.

He added libraries would be willing to work with the province on alternative approaches, including parental advisories and expanded parental controls, but said the government moved ahead without consulting libraries.

The Alberta government has said the proposed regulations intend to control youth access to explicit content in public libraries.

by Jesse Gill

Chief Librarian at Medicine Hat Public Library concerned about impact of Bill 28

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