Introduction: Redefining the Role of Libraries in the Political Process and in Conflict Situations

For better or worse, libraries are part of the fabric of society. They cannot survive and thrive as alien bodies nor, to use the language of systems theory, as closed systems with impermeable boundaries. It should therefore not surprise us that libraries are directly and indirectly affected, if not buffeted, by societal trends and perturbations. It remains shocking nevertheless when libraries are damaged or destroyed, especially when it appears that they have been deliberately targeted. A number of recent cases of this nature prompted the Library Theory and Research (LTR) section of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) to propose the topic “Libraries in the Political Process: Benefits and Risks of Political Visibility” as the theme for its open session held at the IFLA World Library and Information Congress in Lyon, France, in August 2014. This topic was aligned with the global theme of the IFLA 2014 Congress, “Libraries, Citizens, Societies: Confluence for Knowledge.”

IFLA has over sixty sections and interest groups dealing with current topics of all kinds. Within this constellation, LTR has a particular responsibility to select themes that require rethinking and theoretical reflection at a fundamental level, or that present methodological challenges. Accordingly, the LTR Standing Committee called for papers responding to the challenge of rethinking library roles in relation to the publics we serve in times of crises of all kinds, including political, financial, and managerial crises and crises of professional identity. Participants were asked to look in a scholarly way at these phenomena, not limiting the session to descriptions of the incidents or the defense of libraries, but considering also the profession’s responses and what they say about the way the profession is conceptualizing its role in society.

This issue of Library Trends has its origins in the open session that followed. After a rigorous peer-review process, at least half of the submissions were judged to be of an acceptable level, but only five of them could be accommodated in the program. Unfortunately, two of the selected presenters were unable to participate in the session, Joseph Belletante (France) and Hasan Keseroğlu (Turkey). In the end, three papers were presented at the session, by Tim Huzar (United Kingdom), Amanda Click and Josiah Mark Drewry (United States), Mahmoud Khalifa (Egypt), and Genevieve Hart and Mary Nassimbeni (South Africa). Peter Johan Lor was asked to present an introduction to the session. In light of the high quality of the proposals, after the session the LTR Standing Committee decided to seek a publication outlet for the papers that had been presented, as well as for papers based on the most highly ranked proposals that could not be accommodated at the conference. Many were not able to comply, and in order to compile a balanced and complementary set of papers,, a number of additional contributions were invited, yielding those by Raphaëlle Bats, Denis Merklen, and Ian Johnson. In addition, Christine Stilwell was invited to serve as a coeditor of the special issue, along with Lor and Bats.

The authors represented in this special issue come from a variety of backgrounds—geographic, professional, and scholarly. Three authors and an editor are from France; three authors and two editors are from South Africa; one author is from the United Kingdom, though with extensive international experience and knowledge of the Arab world; and another is from Canada. The last is from Turkey. This issue represents many voices and topics within the overarching theme of “libraries in the political process.” Three broad metathemes were envisaged—libraries in the political process, defining the role of libraries, and libraries in situations of political and social conflicts—but the papers diverge, converge, and intersect at many points, as in a braided river,¹ so that it is difficult to group them according to this scheme. Other themes, such as library neutrality and libraries and democracy, emerged.

Librarians often complain that libraries are overlooked or taken for granted. But when libraries appear in the headlines, it may be a mixed blessing. The...