The symbol, put up in 2020, is taken down after Jackson County Library Services director says she received comments that its continued display ‘could be construed as a statement’

By Cameron Aalto, Ashland.news

After five years of display and many weeks of discussion, a decision was made to take down a pride banner at Ashland Public Library, the library’s management decided on a split vote at a meeting Aug. 21, a followup to an earlier meeting on July 29.

According to Bear Creek area manager Kristin Anderson, manager of the Ashland Library, the pride banner was installed in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic as a response to a local evangelist group, the Rogue Valley Salt Shakers. 

Anderson said that the day the banner went up the library was expecting the Salt Shakers’ arrival: “The Salt Shakers came to a recurring program that we have … called Queer Coffee House, and we got word … that they were picketing. And so, we had advanced notice and wanted to make sure we had this plan that made everyone in this space — staff, patrons, attendees — feel as safe as possible in an environment that would be inherently not safe-feeling for some people, knowing what placards (the Salt Shakers) were going to have in tow.”

She said that all staff were notified that the group would be coming and were given the resources they could use to help manage their personal well-being. 

“We determined that one of the things we could do the day of, to send a message of support to folks who would not feel safe, was to put up that pride banner.”

She explained that the banner was put up according to official library policy, adding that “There was never a plan to leave it up permanently, it just ended up being up permanently because by the time things had calmed down … the pandemic happened, then we were getting positive community reinforcement for having it up, like people told us that they were grateful it was there, and it never came down.” 

Five years later, the decision to remove the banner was made by Jackson County Library Services director (JCLS) Kari May at the end of June — the choice supported by board members Viki Brown, Susan Kiefer, Marissa Barrientos Shepherd, and Kevin Keating, with opposition heard from their newest board member, Marta Tarantsey. 

The final decision on whether or not the banner would stay up was not made during the meeting and was instead focused on reviewing May’s decision. 

In an interview after the meeting, May said that she had received comments along the lines of “‘Hey, is that always hanging there? That could be construed as making a statement,’” throughout the five years that the banner has been displayed. She put those comments “on the back burner” until April. 

At the end of April, May said that JCLS “received (an) email from a member of the community asking the same question, and making some of the same observations.” She said that because of that comment, she looked into whether keeping the banner being on permanent display followed library policy. 

May said during the board meeting that although the display policy didn’t specify a specific length of time for which a display could be shown, the policy “implies that, I guess.” Additionally, she said that the banner would not qualify under library board’s gift acceptance policy “as a potential donation of artwork” since “it didn’t really make that criteria.” 

Board member Tarantsey shared that a letter from employees following the banner’s removal indicated that the banner’s presence “was there as a testament, and yes, as a statement; it absolutely became a statement … of a welcoming and inclusive environment, and that (the) banner contributed to the emotional and psychological safety” of employees and patrons.

Tarantsey said, “I just don’t know what sort of an email would lead to taking down (the) banner.”

The Queer Affinity Group (a group of LGBTQ+ workers who are employed by JCLS) responded to May’s decision through email with a list of steps for the board to take. Those included: keeping the banner up permanently, or until an “adequate replacement” could be found and installed, a reaffirmation from the board of its stance against systemic injustice, and a reminder that “the district’s precedent that visibility is neutrality;” the “creation and implementation of training documents for staff on how to handle and respond (to) identity based complaints;” mandatory equity, diversity and inclusion trainings for all board members; and better communication with the Queer Affinity Group and “increased inclusivity in decision making.” 

Tarantsey shared her vote to keep the banner installed by saying, “I know that after receiving feedback from the community … my initial lean, when facing a gray area like this, would be to err on the side of a banner that represents inclusivity still being up, even though … it can be perceived as making a statement.”

Barrientos Shepherd expressed her support for May’s choice saying, “I know this was a difficult decision, but I think we have to be careful, of course, making a political statement and, unfortunately, that’s what it’s perceived as.”

She explains that the “library is, of course, a welcoming place, I think that’s stated as you enter, and of course, we all practice that. I assume if you visited the library, you have found us very welcoming and inclusive and we will continue to be so.”

The statements Shepherd was referring to were welcome signs posted in 2021 at each branch of the Jackson County Library System — signs that are still present to this day. Anderson, the Ashland Library manager, introduced the welcome signs as a reflection of the library’s commitment to neutrality in a blog entry she wrote for the library services titled “Welcome to the Library: A Very Big Tent.” 

Anderson wrote in the post, “In order to be neutral, all of our community must be able to exist safely and openly in our spaces. That is, and will continue to be, our goal.”

Board member Kiefer shared that she was not in favor of reinstalling the banner, saying that “a concern from a patron” was expressed to her. 

She said, “It was a patron who is also part of, at least as she described, a marginalized group, and it was a concern for that displaying a banner that was a symbol for one group of diverse people in her sense of it, excluded other people — symbols not being displayed.”

Kiefer said, “I would like people to perceive the library as a safe place without it having to demonstrate that by displaying supporting displays.” 

She said that while the LGBTQ+ community has experienced attacks, so too have people of color. She added, “We’re … not very far past having protests on both sides of the war in Gaza between the Palestinians and the Israelis. … I would not like to see the library become, sort of a, bulletin board.”

While the library could show its support to marginalized communities by raising flags like the Black Lives Matter flag, “My preference would be to not display any of those,” Kiefer said, adding an exception for specific celebratory months.  

She continued, “When we do displays, like for Black History Month or Pride Month, or whatever, I think there’s an implication that those wouldn’t be permanent, although that’s not stated in our policy, so it may be that we need to make our policy a little more specific about that.”

Kiefer told the board that the decision to remove the banner was frustrating because of its timing. She said, “The email that we got calling our attention to this and inquiring about it appears, (or) makes it appear, as (if) we got a complaint from a community member about having the flag up, and so we’re responding to that complaint by taking (the banner) down.” 

She clarified to the board that her “willingness” to remove the banner was based on policy and not on complaint. 

May said in an interview that she has held listening sessions and opportunities, “for staff to understand better why I had made the decision to remove the pride banner, and also to recognize and acknowledge that there were unintended impacts of that decision.” 

She said she wanted to make space for staff “to express their concerns and their feelings about what impact the removal of that pride banner had on them.”

At the listening sessions, May said members of the  Queer Affinity Group were concerned that the removal of the banner “signifies a reduction in (the libraries’) support” for the LGBTQ+ community. 

When asked for a contact for the Queer Affinity Group, May denied the request, saying, “I’d prefer not to have them talk to you directly, we tend to send all media through management, and I also want to honor that safe space that we created for them, that they don’t have to feel in the spotlight to have to discuss this matter.”

May said that her decision behind taking down the pride banner was driven by policy as well as a desire to “make sure that libraries are welcoming and inclusive to everyone.” 

Though she said that sexuality is not inherently political, she added that “Unfortunately, support for gay rights has become politicized, and so, how can we as a public space for the entire community, both demonstrate our support for everyone in our community, and also, make sure that how we present ourselves backs up (our) value(s)?”

May shared that the board is now “starting conversations” on commissioning artwork to be on permanent display at the library which would celebrate “the uniqueness of the Ashland queer community — and so making it something more personal that reflects that community that we’re in, not simply a banner or flag that shows that support.”

The manager of the Ashland Public Library, Anderson said, “We are serious about wanting to be a welcoming safe space to everybody, a welcoming safe space for staff, for patrons, all of those things are true, and it’s really difficult because this conversation is in conflict with that, and how does this all resolve?”

The final decision for the banner was made Aug. 21 with joint statements from the BIPOC Affinity Group, Disability Affinity Group, and Queer Affinity Group. 

One representative read, “The importance and significance of this banner for the Ashland queer community and LGBTQ+ staff cannot be overstated. This is especially true for BIPOC LGBTQ+ community members here in Jackson County.”

The representative explained that the intersection of identities like BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and disability increase the risk of discrimination and bias. 

A co-facilitator of the Queer Affinity Group and facilitator of the Disability Affinity Group told the board, “The banner was a statement that all are welcome and all are free of discrimination regardless of race, gender, or sexuality.”

They continued, saying, “The pride banner does not mean that straight people aren’t welcome, it means that more than straight people are welcome here.… Due to the escalation in violence, slurs and protests (against the LGBTQ+ community) we believe the pride banner is not a political statement, rather it is a sign that sends a message to all people that this is a safe space.”

May told the board, “as the library director, I care deeply about every individual who works at JCLS and I am dedicated to creating a library space that is welcoming to everyone we serve. Sometimes it may appear like those two statements are at odds with each other. That is one of the challenges of being a modern library system. Creating a safe and welcoming space for everyone to connect to information, ideas and each other is a daily challenge, but is one that we will continue to meet.”

In a vote with four in favor and one in opposition, the board agreed to remove the pride banner. 

Ashland.news intern Cameron Aalto is a recent graduate of Southern Oregon University. Email him at [email protected]. If you have extra information you would like to share, please email Aalto.