I can’t stop thinking about the situation at TPL. The short version is that the library has accepted a room rental from an anti-trans speaker, and despite outcry from trans people and their allies, despite a petition and a boycott by writers, despite their own policy on room rentals not allowing events that promote discrimination, they insist on letting the event proceed. Some library associations are supporting them because librarians love being Champions of Intellectual Freedom.
Many people have made cogent arguments about why TPL’s stance is wrong (see posts by Fobazi Ettarh, Sam Popowich, Kris Joseph). I agree. But there seemed to be more of a reason why the whole thing made me so sad. I’m writing because I think I’ve figured it out.
In its two public statements on the matter, TPL has made sure to say that they “are supporters of the LGBTQ2S+ community.” They “are aware that the upcoming room rental event has caused anger and concern.” But the “community is asking us to censor someone because of the beliefs they hold and to restrict a group’s right to equitably access public space and we cannot do either. Doing so would also weaken our ability to protect others’ rights to the same in the future.” Fine.
But they also said “While TPL encourages public debate and discussion about differing ideas, we also encourage those with opposing or conflicting viewpoints to respectfully challenge each other’s ideas and not the library’s democratic mandate to provide space for both.” That doesn’t sound super supportive. And at the board meeting held on October 22 where the matter was discussed, it was clear they were more concerned with a respectful tone than with actually listening and understanding. Reading how the trans women who spoke at that meeting felt about how they were treated was heartbreaking.
So @torontolibrary is only letting 8 of us into the room to speak or engage the board. They’ve moved most of our group into an overflow room. They had extra security guards and obviously have a plan for how they want to contain us.
— Runaway Supernova (@GwenBenaway) October 22, 2019
I had to leave after I spoke. Being forced to recount all of the transphobic violence that I face in daily life to the TPL board in a room of strangers and watch them stare silently at me as if I was subhuman was one of the worst experiences of my life.
— Runaway Supernova (@GwenBenaway) October 22, 2019
I asked @vbowlestpl directly if she would say that trans women were women and she refused. I asked the entire board if they thought that I should use men’s restrooms and if they thought that would be safe. Silence again.
— Runaway Supernova (@GwenBenaway) October 22, 2019
No one on the @torontolibrary should serve this community, especially not @vbowlestpl , because regardless of their transphobic beliefs, they couldn’t even acknowledge my humanity in that moment.
— Runaway Supernova (@GwenBenaway) October 22, 2019
I want to thank everyone that was there. I had to leave after I spoke, it was a lot to sit in front of people that barely seemed to care I was speaking. Thank you all for your support and love both in the room and out of it.
— Niko Stratis (@nikostratis) October 22, 2019
The TPL board and staff showed us their true colours and allegiances tonight. Gwen was the ONLY person to be called at time and that’s because she was asking them to treat her like a human. Tonight was disgusting and dehumanizing. https://t.co/YAuXCBK0eR
— Niko Stratis (@nikostratis) October 23, 2019
The TPL board showed us who they are and who they support today. I feel awful, like I have never felt. That was dehumanizing, to throw my trauma out on a table to a sea of uncaring eyesx waiting to move to the next agenda item. I feel honestly sick to my stomach. https://t.co/LIPPMLN6Rc
— Niko Stratis (@nikostratis) October 23, 2019
It does not sound like these women were talking to “supporters” of their community.
And that is what’s making me extra sad about the whole thing. Not only is TPL choosing to value intellectual freedom more than they value trans people in their community, they are choosing to value intellectual freedom instead of valuing trans people in their community.
It is not incompatible with upholding intellectual freedom to also acknowledge that it’s doing harm. TPL could reach out to the community and say “we know this event makes trans people feel unsafe. But we’re convinced that not allowing it to go forward will set a precedent for future decisions to shut down other events, possibly those that actively support trans people, and we cannot let that happen. We understand that this event will cause harm and undermine our relationships with LGBTQ2S+ people and your allies. What can we do to mitigate this harm?”
It’s not as good as cancelling the event entirely, but at least it would show that TPL has been listening to its community. It would show that they have thought through the consequences of choosing values over people. It would show that they are not just “aware” of “anger and concern” but they understand the fears, risks, and harm their actions are causing. And of course, the community would have every right to tell them, no, there is nothing you can do to mitigate this harm. But that doesn’t mean TPL shouldn’t try. To not just say “we uphold intellectual freedom,” but to acknowledge exactly what that means in this particular case.
I’m reminded of the saying that goes something like “your right to swing your arm ends when your fist meets my face.” TPL is insisting that they have the right to keep swinging. Fine. But they have been told that their fist has already met the face of the trans community. The compassionate thing would be to offer first aid.
But TPL is not interested. Which, sadly, speaks volumes. It makes it crystal clear that they do not care about the trans community. It makes it crystal clear that they believe that the trans community and its allies are dispensable to their operations. The consequences of their decision (or, to be fair, their decision not to make a decision) are acceptable collateral damage; they are happy to make no attempt to mitigate any of it. If they really were supporters of the LGBTQ2S+ community, they would be supporting the LGBTQ2S+ community.
In a way, it’s not surprising that the trans community is the group that so many librarians are choosing to not care about. Being trans is simultaneously visible and invisible. A trans person may be visibly trans in that they do not present in the way that some might expect, but what makes them trans is inside them, not outside. What makes a person trans is in their heart and their mind. They know who they are *inside* in a way that cannot be seen by people who don’t know them (people who do know them can see how much happier they are when their outside gets closer to matching their inside). But to the outside eye, to the dispassionate eye, there is no evidence. And without evidence, their trans-ness can be seen as just a belief. And if it’s just a belief, well then, we can debate it. And we should debate it because, as librarians, we are Champions of Intellectual Freedom.
I so wish that we were champions of people instead.
Shelley Gullikson 
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