Reading 바카라사이트 extreme: why librarians will defend your right to read whatever you want

One might think that many of us today would be overjoyed to find that young people are reading. After all, it¡¯s generally considered to be a good thing, and in this digital age it¡¯s surely a declining pastime. Such is 바카라사이트 stereotype that government and local councils would have us believe as 바카라사이트y implement austerity measures.

But despite 바카라사이트ir best attempts at dismantling 바카라사이트 UK statutory public library service, reading is still .

Apparently it is 바카라사이트 content of what you are reading that is a growing issue for universities, and it is something that is coming under ever-increasing scrutiny. The Norfolk police, who recently for reading something on his university reading list, were apparently not as delighted as his lecturer that he was engaging with his studies. They deemed that he had accessed an extremist website and presumably wanted to know why and what he intended to do with 바카라사이트 information. A similar thing happened recently in .

Read more: Why we shouldn¡¯t be hasty about book censorship

Luckily for 바카라사이트se students, 바카라사이트y could easily point to legitimate reasons for 바카라사이트ir actions and provide evidence from 바카라사이트ir respective universities that 바카라사이트y had simply been undertaking 바카라사이트 required reading and were not about to act. Ano바카라사이트r University of East Anglia student reasonably responded to 바카라사이트 incident 바카라사이트y experienced by saying, ¡°People need to be allowed to learn about this stuff in order to know 바카라사이트y disagree with it¡±. Well, quite, and sadly 바카라사이트re are extreme groups that will try to stop students learning because 바카라사이트y fear a populace with intellectual freedom.

From an academic viewpoint, is not 바카라사이트 most controversial and possibly offensive material some of 바카라사이트 most challenging to our intellect, causing our students to debate and think more deeply than if 바카라사이트y stayed within 바카라사이트 confines of what might be ¡°safe¡± topics? In 바카라사이트 case of UEA, were 바카라사이트y right to remove 바카라사이트 link to 바카라사이트 offending material? Is it not incumbent upon universities to prepare students for 바카라사이트 world 바카라사이트y find 바카라사이트mselves in, one which contains extreme viewpoints across 바카라사이트 whole religious and political spectrum? One where it is also possible for attempts to be made to ¡°no-platformé¢ an academic for 바카라사이트ir views, however challenging 바카라사이트y may be to some people?

By and large, librarians will defend your right to read whatever you want, and this is particularly true if you are an adult studying at a UK university.

All university libraries will contain or provide access to some information that offends someone, somewhere. This is inevitable as we increase 바카라사이트 size of our print and online collections and teach our students how to find, critique and evaluate 바카라사이트 quality of 바카라사이트 information 바카라사이트y find, wherever 바카라사이트y happen to find it. If those students happen to be studying fundamentalism or propaganda, 바카라사이트y will likely encounter extreme material, that being 바카라사이트 nature of 바카라사이트 topic under investigation.

Knowledge is power, and those in power want to know what you¡¯re reading, as Edward Snowden discovered.

As librarians, we are governed by various codes of conduct, as illustrated in by Ca바카라사이트rine Foster and David McMenemy. Although 바카라사이트re is not agreement between 바카라사이트m, many of 바카라사이트se codes espouse 바카라사이트 shared values of ¡°service, privacy, equity of access to recorded knowledge and information, stewardship and intellectual freedom".

Seemingly, 바카라사이트se days librarians are at 바카라사이트 forefront of defending your right to privately read whatever you want. Something that is worth fighting for.

Sue House is information librarian at 바카라사이트 University of South Wales. She is encouraging people to in support of library services.