Establish first the principle of courtesy.  It is not the job of the library service to change individual beliefs - everyone is entitled to their own opinions.

Then discuss how libraries are public services which aspire to treat everyone equally and public spaces in which everyone has a right to be treated with respect.  This carries responsibilities for library staff.  Understanding this will help to prevent the common collusion between some staff and some borrowers - 'Oh, I can't stand this sort of stuff either, it's come down from headquarters, there's no call for it round here…'

Some staff will feel more comfortable using formal language - quoting phrases from council policies or offering your formal complaints procedure.  Others may prefer common sense colloquial approaches such as this winning reply to the 'We have no Black/gay/poetry readers here' line - ' But you don't need to ride horses to enjoy Dick Francis!'  If anyone comes up with a good phrase, everyone can pinch it.  Build a sense of shared responsibility in dealing with these issues - we're all in it together and can help each other.

In the event staff are very unlikely to have to call upon any of these responses but they will feel a lot more confident after having the discussion. 

Click here to see the results of this exercise in relation to promoting gay and lesbian writing

Click here to see the results of this exercise in relation to promoting Black writing