This study explores library users’ perceptions of public library neutrality amid conflicts over neutrality, diversity, and the question of how to be a library for all. Despite the increased research on these conflicts, the user perspective remains unexplored. Interviews with users at four libraries in Norway and Denmark are analyzed using the cultural pragmatics framework. The study shows that users perceive neutrality as a fundamental value of public libraries, crucial for preventing censorship and ensuring information freedom and equal access. The study emphasizes that neutrality is a complex issue and that neutrality as a principle might not be something one is simply for or against. Understanding users’ perspectives is essential for a more nuanced discussion of neutrality, as it is currently discussed in LIS research.
Nissen et al. (Wed,) studied this question.