Power/Knowledge, Intellectual Freedom and Censorship in Libraries

Abstract

This article examines censorship and intellectual freedom in libraries through Foucault’s concept of knowledge/power and discourse. Foucault recognizes libraries as one of the institutions that control discourse. Discourse is controlled if certain resources are censored, which inhibits intellectual freedom.  The paper discusses the role of various agencies and individuals in library collection development to show how power/knowledge dynamics play out in libraries.  To better understand the local context, the movements by government agencies to censor certain materials from circulation in the Philippines were discussed.  Censorship poses implications for the knowledge that library users can discover in the library.  The library, librarian, library users, library collection, and other institutions or agencies have varying degrees of power over discourse and, at the same time, the knowledge that they hold implies that power.  A comprehensive intellectual freedom policy for libraries is recommended to help balance power/knowledge dynamics in libraries.