For those of us who think of libraries as places of comfort on a cold winter night, the idea of the Denver Public Library being a center of controversy seems unusual, to say the least. Yet the DPL has experienced its share of criticism recently. Just a year ago, for example, U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo and the Colorado Alliance for Immigration Reform demanded City Librarian Rick Ashton’s “immediate resignation” for “squandering public funds” in purchasing thousands of Spanish-language fotonovellas. Mayor John Hickenlooper wrote Tancredo defending Ashton, but by February Ashton had resigned and in June Shirley Amore, formerly the executive director of Community Services in Sarasota, Fla., was named to replace him.
Tancredo’s attack was not the only issue Ashton had dealt with in recent years. There was also criticism of curtailing library hours at branches because of budget cuts and a falling out with the Friends of the Denver Library. Some people found Ashton remote and hard to communicate with, a criticism both vague and telling.
Of course, Ashton also deserved credit for building the Western Literature collection of the DPL, spear-heading the construction of a stunning new library addition and establishing the DPL as one of the top libraries in the nation among cities the size of Denver. But CAIR and Tancredo predictably chose not to focus on these accomplishments and seemed to hold Ashton responsible for illegal immigrants living in Denver.
Fighting back, Ashton called CAIR’s attack “a cheap story” and said his resignation was “a personal decision,” and gave him the opportunity to spend more time with his family. This may well be the case, but there is always some question when a public official in his prime resigns abruptly under pressure. And the problems remain, though the library has done a thorough canvas of the nearly 7,000 Spanish volumes in question and “deaccessioned” those deemed to contain “nudity, sexual content and violence against women.”
Fotonovellas a transitional tool
Not exactly a warm and friendly atmosphere for the new librarian, but Amore doesn’t give the impression of a person who’s inclined to give in under pressure. While she is well aware of the library’s recent problems and Ashton’s critics, she seems to support fully her predecessor’s foray into Spanish graphic novels. “The library has a role to play in helping new immigrants transition to society,” Amore said in an interview. “We need to try to provide services for all our citizens with an emphasis on language and learning.”
Amore went on to say that she sees the fotonovellas as a transitional tool for those whose command of English is imperfect. “We’re beginning to see some success,” she said. “People are learning English, and the Spanish novels provide a real service in this area. What’s more, we’re not the immigration service. We don’t know who’s illegal and who’s a citizen when they walk in the library. In addition, we have other immigrant groups to serve and we have a growing collection of Vietnamese and Russian literature to serve those immigrant groups.”
This is unlikely to satisfy CAIR, but most fair- minded Coloradans will see logic in Amore’s approach. She’s less certain about how to proceed with the Friends Foundation and has yet to appoint a new director of development, though she acknowledges the importance of private giving to the library’s budget. “Building and enhancing relationships that have been damaged in the past is crucial,” she says. “The Friends are very important to us.”
The library raised almost $500,000 in private funds last year with the help of such events as the Booklover’s Ball, the Rare Book Auction and The Evil Companions Literary Award reception. This might seem like a lot; in fact, it is a lot. But for the library to continue to grow, such donations must increase. As with our state universities, “public-private partnership” is likely to become a catch phrase in the future since complete dependence on the city for the library’s operating budget will be impossible.
A troubling question
All of this avoids, of course, the larger issue of the place of reading and books in American culture, Google’s move into what used to be the private domain of libraries and as a consequence the role of libraries in society in the future. Some people who have no problem with the fotonovellas lament the growing number of videos and computer games in library collections and wish that libraries would instead re-assert their place as champions of literature.
It raises the troubling question: If more people are spending time online than reading books, why should the public continue to support bricks and mortar libraries with their taxes?
“The library is more than a collection of books,” Amore responds. “It’s really a community resource and plays a role in bringing people together. The library has service roles, promoting literacy at the pre-school level and summer reading programs and story hours for children. Starting with children, it’s also essential that we keep teens involved with reading. To do that we have to take them where they are, which we’re trying to do. The success of a library has to be measured primarily in its use, so we try to appeal to a wide cross-section. What’s happening here is just as important as what’s in here.”
A preserver of things we value
This has the ring of truth about it. And if the modern library has little resemblance to those of the past, with benevolent librarians who called you dear and guided you to wholesome novels for young readers, well, then, little else is the same either. No writer I know thinks of libraries or librarians as anything other than a link to what’s best in life, as preservers of the things we value most. Amore, who says she reads novels “occasionally,” seems to know this. We can hope to change “occasionally” to “often,” but the early signs indicate that Amore’s appointment was a wise decision.
She’s smart, personable and no shrinking violet when it comes to defending DPL. Which, considering the recent past, could be important. On a pleasant summer morning, however, such things as the controversy surrounding the fotonovellas seem pretty remote. “Actually,” Amore says, “I’m having a blast. I’m just really happy to be here.”
David Milofsky is a Denver novelist and professor of English at Colorado State University in Fort Collins.
