Below is an abridged version of the presentation Niagara-on-the-Lake resident Tony Powell prepared to give to town council on May 14. The group's petition now has more than 800 signatures.
I support library neutrality and signed a petition expressing concern about the actions of the current library board in March to fire Niagara-on-the-Lake Public Library CEO Kathy Simpson. It represents approximately 800 Niagara-on-the-Lake residents.
We believe the Board should fill the vacant seat with an individual who believes in library neutrality and following library policy for the following reasons: We are concerned about the following:
The board's failure to follow its own policies to protect the library's neutrality and diversity of viewpoints. The library board's firing of the library's girlfriend CEO, Kathy Simpson, for writing an opinion piece supporting library neutrality. That taxpayers' money was wasted censoring talented, long-serving officials in the position of defending intellectual freedom. The board attempted to change policies that banned books or restricted access to information.
As a result of these concerns, we believe the vacant seat on the Library Board should be filled by a new board member who believes in library neutrality and adherence to Library policies.
We also believe that an investigation by the Integrity Commission is warranted with regard to our concerns.
We believe you have a duty to the residents who are library members and who will ultimately bear the costs of the Library Board's decisions to have this issue investigated by the Integrity Commissioner.
Kathy Simpson was fired from her job as head librarian by the library board at the age of 61, just three years away from retirement.
She has never received a bad performance review. Because of her comments supporting library neutrality, the library board terminated her employment without notice or reason.
How did this happen? She wrote an opinion piece during “Reading Freedom Week” that will be published in the Lake Report on February 22nd.
Simpson supported the principles of Reading Freedom Week, including intellectual freedom, freedom of expression, freedom to read, and resistance to censorship, especially by library personnel.
In making these arguments, Simpson skillfully uses the example of the Library's own collection development policy, which states that it is committed to “preserving intellectual freedom while protecting the collection from social and political pressures.”
The following week, a letter from a resident to the editor of Lake Report was published. This person characterized Simpson's words as political statements, even though her article was nothing more than a promotion of neutrality and intellectual freedom.
Rather than refuting his position, this resident carefully drew false, harmful, and misleading conclusions to which the library board responded.
Notably, the commission only responded after this resident's letter to the editor was published.
Should the board have taken a more reasonable, negotiated course rather than firing Mr Simpson without cause and notice, which could have opened up a wrongful termination lawsuit?
When some staff members reacted sympathetically to the contents of this person's letter to the editor and threatened to quit, the CEO with a master's degree in library science should have accepted their resignations instead of firing them. I wonder if it was?
We are concerned that the Board took action against Mr. Simpson after receiving a letter from the Library Director, which purported to represent all staff and criticized Mr. Simpson, and which appears to have benefited from the Board's decision and received a pay increase on Mr. Simpson's behalf.
Have books purchased with taxpayer money been or are being removed from circulation in violation of library policy?
We believe it is important that the Council appoint directors who believe in the following core principles:
Libraries should be bastions of free expression and forums for sharing diverse perspectives. Public libraries should aim for neutrality and collect materials that may be unpopular or even offensive to some members of the community. Public libraries must uphold the core value of institutional neutrality. Because only by doing so can we create the conditions in which freedom of reading is possible. There is no justification for excluding certain books or denigrating those who support them based on ideological fears or baseless accusations. It is part of the library's responsibility to the public to ensure that the selection of materials is not unduly influenced by the personal opinions of selectors. Libraries have a duty to protect individuals' rights to access information, even if the content is controversial, heretical, or otherwise unacceptable to others. Public library policies must be strictly followed.
It is hoped that the outcome of the Integrity Commissioner's investigation will be to conclude that it is absolutely necessary for library boards to adhere to these principles.
Another justification for initiating an investigation by the Integrity Committee is the fact that the decision by the Library Board has resulted in a huge waste of taxpayer money by dismissing loyal, long-serving senior staff.
By the time the library board's decision is taken into account the severance pay, loss of benefits, loss of pension benefits, the cost of salary increases during the library administrator's tenure as acting CEO, legal fees, and HR consulting costs due to this unfair dismissal, the library board's decision This could cost the town more than $250,000.
This accounts for a significant portion of a public library's total budget. This is an outrageous waste of public funds that should be of concern to most, if not all, members of this community.
These considerations also serve as criteria for selecting new members of library committees.
It is clear from the overwhelming response to our petition that the Board is out of step with the community it claims to serve.
Despite evidence of significantly less support on this issue than you have received in the past, numerous citizen-led initiatives and complaints have led to Town Council action, rejecting development proposals and reversing previous Town Council decisions.
We ask you to do the right thing and call for an investigation of the board's conduct by the Integrity Commission and appoint new library board members who believe in library neutrality and adherence to library policy.
We believe that research is necessary to restore community confidence in the operation of public libraries.
