Saskatchewan librarians push for better access to books in jails

Jeffery Tram · CBC News

· Posted: May 18, 2025 6:21 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

For galore Canadians, speechmaking a publication is portion of regular beingness — whether its for learning, entertainment or bid of mind. But successful Saskatchewan's provincial jails, entree to speechmaking materials is acold from guaranteed.

That's thing 2 librarians are moving to change.

"People who are incarcerated don't forfeit their rights to entree to accusation oregon to speechmaking materials," says Alan Kilpatrick, a librarian with the Law Society of Saskatchewan.

Kilpatrick and Marika Hunter, a librarian astatine the RCMP Depot Learning Resource Centre, are portion of the Saskatchewan Library Association's Prison Library Subcommittee. They accidental incarcerated radical successful the state are often overlooked erstwhile it comes to entree to books and information.

"It's a model to the extracurricular satellite for incarcerated persons and it allows for them to hole for reintegration and rehabilitation erstwhile they permission the correctional system," Kilpatrick said.

Unlike federally-run prisons, which are governed by authorities that includes room standards, Saskatchewan's provincially-run correctional centres don't person the aforesaid requirements successful place.

"There is national authorities that benignant of sets retired standards for room materials and services for national institutions," Hunter said. "We don't really person comparable authorities provincially, truthful we spot inconsistent access."

The committee has formed partnerships with 3 correctional centres successful Regina, delivering "appropriate speechmaking materials." But the process, they say, isn't simple.

"We cod donations, we acquisition books and past we docket deliveries with the prisons," said Hunter. "But a large portion of our occupation getting the books into their hands is sorting, giving radical the books that would conscionable their informational needs."

Both Hunter and Kilpatrick spot the interaction of books done their professions arsenic librarians.

"I conscionable was struck by however important this is, what an interaction it has and however cardinal it is to librarianship, that cosmopolitan entree that we're not seeing for incarcerated people," said Hunter. "So I heard that. I benignant of looked in, bash we person thing happening similar that successful Saskatchewan? And the reply was no, not really."

Kilpatrick added that the benefits of entree to speechmaking spell good beyond passing the time.

"For young adults who are incarcerated, this is going to assistance them successful immoderate acquisition that they're receiving portion they're incarcerated," helium said. "For adults who are incarcerated, it's going to beryllium a mode for them to hole for merchandise and reintegration."

While the librarians are pleased with the increasing collaboration from correctional staff, they judge putting entree into instrumentality would marque a semipermanent difference.

"I deliberation having authorities is simply a bully starting point," said Hunter.

The committee is presently accepting donations of paperback books successful bully condition, arsenic good arsenic monetary contributions. Volunteers are besides invited to assistance benignant and present materials.