Week 14 Prompt

I would not separate LGBTQIA+ Fiction or Urban Fiction from the general collection for three reasons. First, as librarians we are dedicated to maintaining patron privacy and confidentiality. If LGBTQIA+ Fiction or Urban Fiction were separated from the general collection and given their own designated location, some patrons may feel uncomfortable browsing those collections if others can easily see the kinds of books they are looking at. They might even avoid browsing those sections altogether. Additionally, some patrons may judge or make assumptions about others based on the kinds of books they are looking at.

Second, safety is a huge concern, especially when using stickers or separate locations to designate books as LGBTQIA+. While these identifiers could help LGBTQIA+ patrons find materials that reflect their experiences, they can also harm patrons. LGBTQIA+ patrons who have not yet come out may avoid browsing designated LGBTQIA+ Fiction sections for fear of being outed. Some may avoid browsing this section for fear of being harassed by other patrons. Minors may face negative responses from their parents. I once had a teen who was visiting the library with her dad ask me to help her find a sapphic romance without an obvious title or characters on the cover because her parents were homophobic. Had our LGBTQIA+ books been marked with stickers or separated from the rest of the teen collection, she would not have been able to look at or check out any of them. I believe any potential harm that patrons could face outweighs the benefits of separating these collections. I think it would be more beneficial to add these diverse books to displays and make print/digital lists patrons could use to discretely locate these books.

Third, separating LGBTQIA+ Fiction and Urban Fiction from the rest of the collection may prevent patrons from naturally finding diverse books that would expand their worldview. Some patrons may hold negative biases or stereotypes about LGBTQIA+ and Urban Fiction and decide to avoid those sections. Additionally, some patrons who are cisgender, heterosexual, and white may think LGBTQIA+ Fiction and Urban Fiction may not think those books are for them. In either case, the rest of the collection will be less diverse and patrons will be limited in their ability to find diverse books naturally.