In the past year, books about LGBTQ+ people and people of color were hidden on far away shelves and thrown in the trash at multiple Salem libraries.
It happened in a year where books in Oregon libraries across the state saw more challenges and censorship efforts than ever before, according to the Oregon State Library which has been tracking reports since 1987.
The State Library’s 2024 report tracked challenges at libraries between July 1, 2023, and June 30, 2024. It recorded 63 challenges to 153 items, mostly books. Both were increases from last year, which saw 46 challenges to 93 items.
A challenge is any attempt by someone to remove materials from the library, either through formal channels or by hiding, damaging or throwing away items on display. In one case, someone shot a BB gun at a pride flag in the window of the Newberg Public Library.
Of this year’s total, the Salem Public Library reported two incidents, an increase from one last year. Chemeketa Community College reported two.
At both libraries, those reports encompassed multiple ongoing occurrences which the Oregon State Library is counting as one report due to them likely being connected, said Buzzy Nielsen, program manager.
It comes amid “heightened political attention on the content in books for youth,” the State Library report said. “Keeping with national trends, Oregon is no stranger to seeing increased materials challenges during charged political climates.”
According to the report, book challenges in Oregon peaked in 1992 when a ballot measure, which voters rejected, asked whether the government should “discourage homosexuality.” That year, 79 challenges were reported across the state. In 2000, another peak came when a measure asked whether public schools should discourage homosexuality and bisexuality, and another measure sought to regulate sex shops. Both were rejected by voters.
Statewide, most of the challenged items this year — 87% — were stories about people in protected classes, including LGBTQ+ people and people of color. That trend continued in Salem.
The Salem Public Library isn’t seeing the same intensity of challenges as elsewhere in the country, said Sonja Somerville, the Salem Public Library’s programming and outreach supervisor.
But there were several instances where a book was put in an odd enough place that staff believed it was intentional.
“We are extrapolating that they’re making an effort in some way to prevent somebody else from seeing that book,” she said.
In the past year at the Salem Public Library, people ripped off part of a Pride display, hid “Gender Identity for Kids” on a distant shelf and attempted to throw away a copy of “True You: A Gender Journey.” At the West Salem branch, someone hid a copy of “The 1619 Project,” which discusses slavery’s role in United States history and modern institutions.
In one instance at the main branch of the Salem Public Library, someone threw away “Rainbow Bridge,” a young adult graphic novel referring to the common expression for where pets go when they die. In the report, the librarian wrote “Presumably considered LGBTQ+ because of the word ‘rainbow’ in the title and image of a rainbow on the cover.”
Salem librarians are trained for the infrequent times when someone approaches them and asks them to remove a book, Somerville said. If patrons would still like to proceed with the complaint after a discussion, they can submit a request for reconsideration form.
Most people, after talking with a librarian, opt to not make a formal request to challenge a book, Somerville said. The Salem Public Library reported no written requests this year.
“We find that we’re really very well prepared to have conversations about the role of the library and libraries in general, in making a broad range of materials available to people and how many different needs there are,” she said.
Chemeketa Community College’s reported incidents were traced to the same person, said spokeswoman Marie Hulett in an email to Salem Reporter.
According to the reports, library staff found that repeatedly, over several weeks, portions of the Pride month display were “turned around, taken down or moved.” A book of Black history was also hidden behind an American history book multiple times, and fliers from the League of Women Voters and college drag shows were removed.
“Libraries across the nation are experiencing an increase in these types of incidents, though it is less common in college libraries compared to public ones. Historically, Chemeketa has not faced such challenges, and this issue has since been fully resolved,” Hulett said.
In another reported incident, someone used a permanent marker to write an anti-gay slur on the men’s bathroom wall.
Chemeketa did not receive any formal challenges this year, which can be submitted by filling out a reconsideration of library resources request form.
“Regarding the record-breaking number of book challenges across the state, Chemeketa remains committed to offering a wide range of materials that reflect diverse perspectives,” Hulett said. “Intellectual freedom is a core value, not just for libraries, but for educational institutions like ours, as we strive to foster an environment of open dialogue and learning.”
The Salem-Keizer School District received two challenges to books in school libraries in 2022 for Gender Queer, a graphic novel memoir, and Stamped, a kids’ book about racism and the history of antiracist activism in the U.S. Both times, a district panel decided to retain the books.
There have been no formal requests to remove a book from schools since, district spokesman Aaron Harada said.
Somerville said that people come to the Salem Public Library because they want to learn about other people’s experience, and read something that reflects their own.
“If you’re a public library, you serve the whole public,” she said.
She said the library continues to look for ways to highlight the voices in its collection through programing, displays and by sharing reading lists, including for LGBTQ+ books and a span of cultures.
“That’s what books are so amazing for, right? Because they can help you feel like you’re speaking with someone who understands you. And they can also challenge you to understand people in a different way,” she said.
Sometimes, people may come across a book that they’re not comfortable reading, she said. Librarians are available to have conversations about that.
“When you find something that you’re not interested in or doesn’t resonate with you, you can close the book and move on to a different book,” she said. “I think that that’s one of the powerful things about experiencing literature, too. You get to make choices for you, and we always support people making the right choice for themselves.”
Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-575-1251.
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Abbey McDonald joined the Salem Reporter in 2022. She previously worked as the business reporter at The Astorian, where she covered labor issues, health care and social services. A University of Oregon grad, she has also reported for the Malheur Enterprise, The News-Review and Willamette Week.
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