Unions welcome Varadkar pledge to protect Cork library staff but ask for stronger policing

Trade union leaders have welcomed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s pledge to protect beleaguered library staff in Cork from being harassed by protesters, but they urged the Government to get gardaí to adopt a more robust policing approach.

Staff have faced direct confrontation with protesters opposed to the availability of some LGBTQ+ materials in public libraries in recent months, with some books damaged.

Richy Carrothers, Fórsa head of local government and local services division, said Mr Varadkar’s comments on the issue in Dáil Éireann this week were welcome, but that the Government now needs to take action to tackle the problem.

Mr Varadkar said: “I want to express my solidarity with the library service and the people who work in libraries – this is not a country that bans books because people don’t agree with their content and places that ban books, shortly after that, they start burning books and sometimes burning people.

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“That’s not a road we are going to go down as a country ... It is important that we make sure librarians are supported in their job and feel safe in their jobs and that is what the Government is committed to.”

Mr Carrothers said Mr Varadkar’s expression of solidarity with the Cork library staff was welcome, but Fórsa wanted to see the Government take immediate and real action to ensure library staff can work in a safe environment without fear of harassment or intimidation.

“I would like to see the Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, meet with the Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris, and agree with our assessment that this is not a reasonable protest and for the gardaí to act accordingly and deal swiftly with the problem,” he said.

“If you went into an A & E department in a hospital and behaved like that, screaming and shouting at workers, it would be dealt with swiftly – so why should libraries be any different? Libraries should be sanctuaries of support and inclusivity and they need to be protected as such.”

Mr Carrothers was speaking after 500 people, including library staff, marched to Cork city Hall to protest at what they say is Cork city Council’s failure to protect them from right-wing agitators protesting over LGBTQ+ books that they say are unsuitable for young adults.