The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) is committed to libraries providing access to information for all. There is no place for censorship. People should be free to decide what books they borrow from their public library. People should also be able to find stories that represent their culture, their families and their identities. This freedom of choice and access to information and stories that represent them is a fundamental pillar of democracy.
ALIA is appalled by the actions of some members of Cumberland City Council who voted last week to ban books about same-sex parenting in their libraries. As stated in the APLA-ALIA Standards and Guidelines for Australian Public Libraries, ‘public library collections should cover a wide range of popular topics, express a variety of viewpoints and cultural understandings, and represent a diversity of people, places, events, issues and ideas.’
ALIA’s core values include respect for the diversity, individuality and equality of all, the free flow of information and ideas through open access to recorded knowledge, information, and creative works.
We stand with Equality Australia in calling for the reversal of this decision by Cumberland Council and encourage all those who value our freedom to read to
sign the petition.