One-third of books banned from U.S. school libraries tell LGBTQ+ stories. Now, libraries on college campuses and in communities face an increased responsibility to make queer stories accessible. For many in the U.S., Pride Month in June is a time to commemorate and celebrate the advancements of the LGBTQ+ community. But some believe recent concerted efforts to ban LGBTQ+ literature in schools across America pose a threat to strides previous generations of LGBTQ+ people have made toward achieving total acceptance.
The number of banned and challenged books in schools is increasing. Here’s what librarians can do about it. School libraries have provided a safe space for learning about diverse cultures and lifestyles for generations. They’ve been that special place where kids could get extra help on an assignment or take a walk in someone else’s shoes by simply picking up a book. However, the range of perspectives available in school libraries is under threat, as parental concerns regarding content available to their children is backed by changes in U.
Show off your LGBTQ+ titles with Book Display Widgets. To celebrate Pride Month, we’ve made a page on our LibGuide of Book Display Widgets that showcase LGBTQ+ titles. Book Display Widgets, as we’ve mentioned before, are a great way to show off your collection. Our curated widgets on the LibGuide make it fast and simple to copy a widget into your own Syndetics Unbound account. Just click “Get This Widget” and it’s yours.
In honor of Women’s History month, we’ve created several Book Display Widgets, which you can check out on our LibGuide. We talked about how easy Book Display Widgets are to make previously on the blog (see Showcasing Titles for Black History Month). Our curated widgets on our LibGuide make the process even simpler—all you have to do is click “Get this widget” to copy it into your own Syndetics Unbound account.
Want to highlight some books for Black History Month on your library’s homepage? Use a Book Display Widget to create a virtual book display! Book Display Widgets supplement the catalog enrichment of Syndetics Unbound, allowing you to create virtual book displays, with covers that link to each item’s record in your catalog, driving traffic and discoverability. Making a widget is an easy process in the Syndetics Unbound admin. Choose what items you want to display.
