Minnesota Library Stands Up for Unfettered Internet Access

Staff -- School Library Journal, 2/1/1999

Temperatures may be subzero in Minnesota, but the Hennepin County Library has been at the center of a hot debate about the public's use of theInternet. The controversy came to a head in December, when, after months of deliberation, the library board rejected calls from conservative groups and country commissioners to restrict Internet access.

In a unanimous decision, the library board reaffirmed its policy that the library is not responsible for monitoring how either adults or children use the Internet. Any restrictions on children's use of the Internet, the policy states, "is the sole responsibility of the parent or legal guardian."

New York City Librarians Leave for Greener Pastures (January 15, 1999) With a third of its new librarians leaving for jobs elsewhere, library management at New York City's three library systems has made an historic appeal to city officials to increase librarian salaries by 15 percent. The New York Public Library, Brooklyn Public Library, and Queens Borough Public Library systems say that current librarian salaries are so low that librarians, particularly children's services staff, are defecting to school, corporate, and suburban public libraries.

Representing New York City, Jim Hanley said that while he was impressed with the presentation that New York Public Library President Paul LeClerc made on behalf of the three library boards, Hanley had no authorization from the mayor to offer any money. Meanwhile, both library administration and labor union officials have made bolstering librarian salaries a priority.