Library of Congress and Children

Erica L. Green at NYT:

President Trump fired the librarian of Congress because she promoted diversity, equity and inclusion, the White House said Friday, making Dr. Carla Hayden one of the most high-profile leaders of color to be targeted in the administration’s campaign to suppress discussions about race and gender at America’s cultural institutions.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said the administration believed Dr. Hayden “did not fit the needs of the American people,” and that her firing resulted from “quite concerning things that she had done at the Library of Congress in the pursuit of D.E.I.”

Ms. Leavitt did not offer any evidence of “D.E.I.” pursuits Dr. Hayden engaged in. She accused Dr. Hayden of allowing “inappropriate books in the library for children.”

The Library of Congress does not lend books to adults or children and as the world’s largest library houses over 34 million books and printed materials.