Sex in the Stacks: Examining the Treatment of Explicit Materials in American Libraries

Abstract

Questions about whether and how American libraries should collect, describe, and share sexually explicit materials are a perennial source of discussion both within the profession and in the wider national public forum. This ever-present debate has led to book challenges and bans as well as legal action, and it remains a hot topic through the present day for those looking to critique the role and function of libraries in American society. By examining elements of this history and how these questions have been addressed in both public and academic library settings, we can start to uncover some of the deeper cultural biases at play in the American LIS profession’s failures to fully embrace sexually explicit materials as a meaningful part of our collections and, relatedly, our larger philosophical failures to treat our patrons holistically as human beings whose physical lives are inextricably linked to their intellectual ones. A critical reconsideration of the place of pleasure and embodiment in our libraries has deep implications for how we work with and for our communities.