Tony Corsentino: The public library at its best is maybe the most radically democratic of all public institutions, because it grants to children the same civic status and prerogatives it affords to all other patrons. Fight every attack on a child’s right to be just another patron. 📚

The public library at its best is maybe the most radically democratic of all public institutions, because it grants to children the same civic status and prerogatives it affords to all other patrons. Fight every attack on a child’s right to be just another patron. 📚

www.nola.com/gambit/news/...

Young people face restricted access at public libraries starting May 30, unless parents update card settingswww.nola.com New Orleans Public Libraries will restrict certain access to youths under new state law, pending parents' permission

As a librarian and as an adoptee, I care a whole lot about letting young people seek knowledge about the world and themselves without running into institutional walls and checkpoints. 🥚 📚

I can’t believe I live here

Children are people. Time we treated them as such.

This.👆It makes me angry when people say children are important because they are the future. They are important now, and their needs and aspirations have equal value to any adult's. 📚

My son’s happiest birthday was when he turned 9, because that was the age the library allowed him to visit without an adult.

It's absolutely disgusting that people attempt to restrict children. They don't see them as people and THAT IS THE PROBLEM.

This but unironically.

I didn't get the impression Waters was being ironic when he said it. I wish I could find the clip of it.

John Waters? Definitely not ironic then.

(And I mean that unironically)

Wow, offensive, unnecessary, and evil.

Well said.

The Republicans are getting older without as many young people to cycle in. Keeping the next generation dumb is a surefire way to make more Republicans.

I know it is still a bad idea to have any restrictions but how about an opt in instead of an opt out as the default. The parents who would opt in to such a system would probably not let their kid in a library anyways.

I see where you’re going with that, but it still supports the idea that a child is their parents’ property. Better we have no such system.

Yes. A bad idea for the same reason that it would be bad to let employers opt in to a less strict set of employment regulations. Kids are people and citizens and the state should protect their rights, including the right to find out their parents are wrong.

Post