Toronto Public Library has revealed the titles of items people complained about in 2012.

by: Steve Kupferman

Every year, Toronto Public Library releases a report with a list of items that Torontonians tried to have removed from library shelves over the previous year. (The library term is “request for reconsideration of library materials,” which is a very diplomatic way of putting it.)


You may be heartened to know that, by and large, Torontonians don’t lodge many complaints over library materials. There are generally only a handful in any given year. Also, the library rarely actually withdraws an item in response to a complaint.

In 2012, however, according to a just-released report on last year’s complaints, there was one item that library staff did withdraw.

Date Rape: A Violation of Trust, an educational video made in 2007, was brought to the library’s attention by a patron who found it “racist.” Library staff determined that the video, “while well-intentioned,” did reinforce stereotypes. Also, according to the report, “information on date rape is confused with stranger rape and is inconsistently presented.” The video is gone now, and we’re guessing all the high school students that might have been subjected to it won’t be too bummed out.

The library also had complaints about these three items, all of which were retained in the collection:

•Woyzeck, a Werner Herzog film. (“DVD cover depicts violence against women and might be seen by children.”)

•Hard and Fast, a gay romance novel. (“Pornographic.”)

•The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades), an educational book for lazy people. (“Promotes Islamophobia.”)
from: Torontoist