OPINION: Book Not Closed on Library

Nothing is settled for the Dedham Library Trustees.

Unless members speak frankly, Dedham cannot trust trustees.

Way too much has happened in clear public view for the elected members to say they have the problems well in hand.

For example, in the came from Library Director Patricia Lambert. She made the accusation during her final meeting; then swept out of the and out of office.

Censorship is deadly serious. In a public library, it requires full exploration.

It brought no discussion.

Lambert later explained on a Dedham Patch article that she was referring to a comment left on the Dedham Library Innovation Team's Facebook page that she said was removed.

Lambert left after seven years because she was not liked by the trustees.

But to have censorship mentioned at a trustees meeting and not be given the slightest mention is mystifying. Censorship strikes at the core of open debate.

This is an indication of how little the trustees understand their public offices and their necessity to take up the readers’ issues. Yes, they have their legal library jobs to do, but they must also see themselves as representatives for the town.

They have handled the past few months like members of a secret society instead of an open forum.

, money being low, but were suddenly re-hired.

Who fired the three helpers? Nobody ever said. That must be a matter of public knowledge; rules say the firings had to go through the library director. This is not a matter of staying quiet to spare feelings; it is a matter of how the town’s libraries are operated. That is every citizen’s business. Come Election Day, citizens might well cast their vote on this very issue. They need that answer. One member, Mike Chlifoux, said the pages were fired in the past and everybody knows that will happen again.

Then why were some of the trustees - chairman Joseph D’Amico, Rebecca Peluso, Brad Bauer and Rachel Tuerck - openly confused about the job action?

Together, they sadly said they had too little money open on Saturday. So they opted for the Main Branch to stay open. Then they said the .

Maybe that would seem a small item. But with trustees unfamiliar with all library trustee items, everything becomes uncertain.

Yes, the trustees have carried many duties well.

But they have left a battle field of uncertainties that casts shadows on all trustee business.

This is a group of guardians of a public library: more than any other elected body, Dedham should have a see-through window into trustee business.

Open the windows.