The Sports
Illustrated Swimsuit Issue: Lewd in the Library
by Roz Warren
The Sports
Illustrated Swimsuit issue just came out, and all
over America librarians are flipping
through its pages and rolling their eyes.
The swimsuit
issue, which isn’t actually about swimwear
at all, but, is, instead, about young,
beautifully shaped female bodies, is the single
most stolen item in any public library. Shelve it
in your magazine section like any other
periodical? It’ll vanish. Like magic. Always.
But hide it behind the Reference Desk and make
your patrons sign it out?
Is that just
good sense? Or is it censorship?
Every year,
the swimsuit issue gets a bit more lascivious --
the bikinis skimpier, the poses more provocative,
the expressions on the models’ faces less
about “Look at my strong, healthy body!“
and more about “Do me! Now! Right here on
the beach!”
This
year’s cover shows three stunning young
woman, topless, their backs to the camera,
smiling happily at the viewer over their
shoulders, their gorgeous rumps more revealed
that concealed by itty wisps of fabric.
Is this really
what we want to display on our library’s
magazine rack?
Of course, the
collection of my suburban Philadelphia library
contains all three books in the Shades of Grey
trilogy, and numerous other examples of sexy
contemporary “literature.” (And the sex
scenes in the romances we circulate are hot hot
hot.)
We librarians
tend to be fans of the First Amendment. I’m
a card-carrying member of the ACLU myself. I even
subscribe to Playboy -- for the articles and
interviews, of course.
What I’m
saying is that I’m all for pornography.
But
there’s a time and a place for porn. I
wasn’t sure this was the time or the place.
I’m in charge of processing and then
shelving incoming magazines. Before putting this
one out on the floor, I decided to consult my
supervisor.
Carol and I
perused the issue together. “OMG!“
“Would you look at that?” “Yikes!”
“Do you even SEE a swimsuit in this picture?“
“Oy!” “I hope her mother
never sees that shot.”
This was
pretty hot stuff.
We were
inclined to stash it behind the reference desk,
along with the other stuff that patrons like to
steal. The Tuesday “Science” section of
the New York Times. The Morningstar weekly stock
market updates.
But first, we
brought the issue to the head of the library.
Our boss took
a look, then said, “Just shelve it.
Don’t treat it differently than any other
magazine. It’s no worse than what they can
see every day on television.”
That woman
sure loves the First Amendment.
And, of course,
the truth is that we’re living in an era
where anyone, of any age, can view all the naked
tushies they want, whenever they want, online.
“Put a
security tag on it, of course,” she added.
Although we all know how easy it is to remove
those tags.
Before I
shelved it, my co-workers passed it around. The
consensus? We weren’t exactly shocked. But
we weren’t exactly thrilled either.
We’re all
middle-aged women. Many of us are grandmas. Still,
in our heyday, we too were hot chicks. But you
can be a hot chick and not want to share that
aspect of yourself with the entire world. The
kind of young woman who is drawn to library work
is rarely the kind of young woman who ends up
spilling out of her bikini on the cover of a
magazine.
We librarians
don’t tend to let it all hang out.
Which means
that we are, increasingly, at odds with our
culture. Modesty? How retro is that? Dignity?
Forget about it.
Still, we
proudly stand behind the First Amendment. Perhaps,
to a fault. And while I wasn’t exactly
elated about adding that little touch of smarm to
our quiet reading room, I went ahead and shelved
the swimsuit issue, just like any other magazine.
Within 24
hours, it was gone.
This
essay first appeared in www.womensvoicesforchange.org.
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