ALA announced a national day of action to protect libraries and the freedom to read, designating April 24, the Monday of National Library Week, as Right to Read Day. Right to Read Day also marks the first anniversary of the…
Category: Intellectual Freedom
ALA Launches Policy Corps Cadre for Proactive Advocacy on Book Banning
ALA’s Public Policy & Advocacy (PPA) Office, in partnership with ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, have announced a new initiative for proactive advocacy to combat book banning and censorship in America’s libraries. A cadre of the ALA Policy Corps will…
ALA reports record number of demands to censor library books and materials in 2022
The American Library Association (ALA) today released new data documenting* 1,269 demands to censor library books and resources in 2022, the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began compiling data about censorship in libraries more than 20 years…
‘Same Fight, New Tactics’
The 2023 LibLearnX Conference in New Orleans in January featured several programs on combatting censorship and protecting intellectual freedom, including “Building a Practical Toolkit for Censorship and Challenges at Your Public Library.” This program offered practical tools and tips to…
Register for ALA Connect Live Dec. 15 on ‘Facing Censorship Head On With ALA’
The topic of the next ALA Connect Live on Dec. 15 will be Our Brave Communities: Facing Censorship Head On with ALA. ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada will welcome panelists Martha Hickson, School Librarian at North Hunterdon-Voorhees Regional High School;…
Register now for Dec. 13 Learning Live, ‘Intellectual Freedom Update: Reflecting on 2022 and Recharging for 2023′
Register now for the Dec. session of United for Libraries Learning Live, “Intellectual Freedom Update: Reflecting on 2022 and Recharging for 2023.” Featured speakers will include United for Libraries Board Members Skip Dye and Deborah Doyle, and past United Board…
Get ready for Banned Books Week, Sept. 18-24, 2022
Banned Books Week, held Sept. 18-24, 2022, celebrates the freedom to read and spotlights current and historical attempts to censor books in libraries and schools. Boards of Trustees, Friends of the Library groups, and library Foundations can get involved by…
Freedom to Read Foundation to host virtual symposium ‘Where Intellectual Freedom and Social Justice Meet: A Call to Action,’ July 12 and 13
The Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF) invites all library workers, educators, authors, journalists, publishers, social justice workers and First Amendment advocates to attend and participate in its free virtual symposium, Where Intellectual Freedom and Social Justice Meet: A Call to…
Free preconference workshop at ALA Annual: ‘The ABC’s of Preserving Intellectual Freedom – Anticipating, Bridging and Conversing: How to Help Protect Your Library’
United for Libraries is presenting a FREE preconference workshop, The ABC’s of Preserving Intellectual Freedom – Anticipating, Bridging and Conversing: How to Help Protect Your Library, on Fri., June 24, 1-4 p.m., at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C.,…
Register for free ‘Reading is a Right’ webinar May 12
The University of South Carolina, Penguin Random House, and EBSCO will present the webinar “Reading is a Right: What Parents Need to Know about Book Bans and Pushing Back” on May 12, 8 p.m. Eastern, featuring author Kyle Lukoff. Join…