Reports by investigative reporters are often not pretty. While there can be “gotcha” efforts, sometimes sunshine is provided in a dark situation. This is an odd one.
WTMJ in Milwaukee presented an online report following up on alleged actions by a librarian serving alcohol to minors near her home. The library director for the town of Walworth appears to have pleaded guilty and no contest to an array of charges. The person concerned, according to the report, has not lost her job even though she wound up with a $3,000 fine.
Things like this are not pretty but raise questions. What is the role of the public library in today’s world? When unaccompanied minors come into a library, what is the duty of care owed? What might something like this do to a library’s reputation especially when budget request time comes?
Read the story and think about it.
wisconsin librarian
Walworth is not Milwaukee, it is a rural community near Lake Geneva, WI, not far from the Illinois border. This particular librarian purchased alcohol for a party that was happening next door to her house, where her teenage child was attending. It had nothing to do with her being a librarian, it was a parent making a bad choice. The fact that she is a librarian is beside the point.
The point of the artical is
The point of the artical is that as a librarian (i.e. someone who works with children) she should know better.
Why, was someone hurt?
Why, was someone hurt?
My first question would be
My first question would be — how old were the teens? Frankly, the US drinking laws are insane. How are kids supposed to learn to drink responsibly if they are not exposed to alcohol so to learn its effects? What we do now, turning them loose at 21 and saying ‘drink up’ leads to big problems. Look at the problems that universities and the military have with young adults drinking. Note that most European countries do not have these insane laws, and look at the differences in alcohol statistics between them and us.
My second question would be what kind of alcohol was served?
I realize that serving alcohol to minors in the US is illegal. But I do think that hysteria about drinking doesn’t help society by criminalizing behaviour and turning responsible adults into object lessons.
I think the library and board acted correctly. How would firing this person help?
And don’t even get me started about “investigative reporters”. Someone saw a chance to get his 15 minutes of fame, and to hell with the damage caused. Just another reason why reporters are trusted just a wee bit more than polititians.
NOTE — these are my opinions, and certainly do not reflect the views of my employer!
I wouldn’t go so far as to
I wouldn’t go so far as to say it raises the question of what is the public libraries role. I think it raises the question of what authority or obligation does the library board have over what an employee does in their personal life? I think it’s up to each library to have policies in place that address this before the issue comes up. I commend the board for making a decision and sticking to it.
Geez get perspective
At least the librarian was not having sex with them
Fifty dollar fine, pick up some trash for a weekend, get on with life.
The library plays no role in this. It could have been the bus driver, the mailman, a personal injury attorney, or reverend Smith.