“You must find a way to get in the way and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.” – Representative John Lewis
Category: Blogger Intellectual Freedom Committee
Information Literacy – Please Pass the Grain of Salt
Does anyone remember the Spaghetti Harvest? Or the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus? These were early (and wacky) examples of media hoaxes. They became staples of information literacy instruction for many educators, because they illustrated how convincing even the most bizarre information can seem when it’s presented as fact. Today these scams seem benign and quaint.
A Thoughtful Approach to Banned Books Week
Banned Books Week once again approaches, scheduled this year for September 23-29. Have you put some thought into how you want the library to advertise and promote it?
Wish You Were Here…ALA Annual 2018
New Orleans in June: stifling heat outside, sweater weather inside, and another ALA Annual Conference successfully navigated in possibly the longest convention hall in the country. For those who had to miss it this year, here are some of the highlights from an ALSC intellectual freedom angle: No doubt you have heard that the ALSC Board voted unanimously to change the name of the Wilder Award to the “Children’s Literature Legacy Award”. Unfortunately, there has been quite a bit of confusion and misinformation circulating about this decision. It is well worth your time to read the entire ALSC Statement about its decision, and to follow up with the blogpost by Jamie LaRue, Director of the ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom, here. The title of the award now aligns more closely with one of ALSC’s core values, inclusiveness, and should not be interpreted as an attempt to censor Wilder’s books. Concerned about information literacy? At a panel discussion about “Fake…
Interview with Steven Herb, 2018 ALSC Distinguished Service Award Winner
To say the 2018 ALSC Distinguished Service Award recipient, Steven Herb, has had a long, interesting library career is a terrible understatement. From serving on and leading award committees, chairing the ALSC Intellectual Freedom Committee, being the President of ALSC, and leading the Pennsylvania Center for the Book, Herb has made lasting contributions to library services for children. We focus now on his interest in and experience with Intellectual Freedom.
#MeToo and Children’s Services
Many ALSC members have questioned whether children’s librarians should purchase, use, or even keep books by authors implicated in #MeToo situations (or who have been accused of other “bad” behaviors). The ALSC IF Committee and the ALSC Collection Management Discussion Group collaborated with the hope of starting a conversation. Feel free to chime in here and to follow up at ALA Annual Meeting, details below.
A Brief Chat with Charles Brownstein, Comic Book Legal Defense Fund
Free Comic Book Day is Saturday, May 5, 2018!
ALA Midwinter Highlights
Mid-Winter Roundup 2018 At a snowy Midwinter Conference in Denver, intellectual freedom work occurred in small group sessions, cross-committee task force meetings and on the big stage where the question of library neutrality was ardently debated. Here’s a quick rundown of some of the intellectual freedom highlights: