most recently updated in July 2000, states, among other things,
that "[i]t is in the public interest for publishers and
librarians to make available the widest diversity of views and
expressions, including those that are unorthodox or unpopular
with the majority." It also states that "[i]t is the
responsibility of . . . librarians . . . to contest encroachments
upon th[e] freedom [to read] by individuals or groups seeking to
impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at
large."


Public libraries provide information not only for
educational purposes, but also for recreational, professional,
and other purposes. For example, Ginnie Cooper, Director of the
Multnomah County Library, testified that some of the library's
most popular items include video tapes of the British
Broadcasting Corporation's "Fawlty Towers" series, and also print
and "books on tape" versions of science fiction, romance, and
mystery novels. Many public libraries include sexually explicit
materials in their print collection, such as The Joy of Sex and
The Joy of Gay Sex. Very few public libraries, however, collect
more graphic sexually explicit materials, such as XXX-rated
videos, or Hustler magazine.
The mission of public librarians is to provide their patrons
with a wide array of information, and they surely do so.
Reference librarians across America answer more than 7 million
questions weekly. If a patron has a specialized need for
information not available in the public library, the professional
librarian will use a reference interview to find out what
information is needed to help the user, including the purpose for