Intellectual Freedom News 09/15/2023
Highlights
- ALA condemns threats of violence to Chicago-area libraries | ALA
- U.S. Senate hearing on book bans probes censorship in local libraries | Minnesota Reformer
- The Search for More Complex Racial and Ethnic Representation in Grade School Books | Education Trust
- NCAC launches network for grassroots organizations fighting censorship | School Library Journal
- America’s top librarian on the rise of book bans | New York Times
Censorship
- Marietta school board orders superintendnet to remove ‘sexually explicit material’ | Marietta Daily Journal (GA)
- Yancey commissioners take over library board, add 7 new members after June Pride display | Asheville Citizen Times (NC)
- Lawmakers clash over book bans, censorship in schools | Courthouse News Service
- Moms for Liberty banks on new state law; Indian River School Board to remove 20 books | Treasure Coast Palm (FL)
- Moms’ vitriol merits passionate response | Vero News (FL)
- 128 books under review in Indian River County school libraries; some already removed | Treasure Coast Palm (FL)
- Judge temporarily blocks ballot proposition to dissolve a rural library in southeastern Washington | Northwest News Network (WA)
- Police respond to several bomb threats called into Chicago area libraries | ABC7 (IL)
- Police respond to bomb threats at libraries in Aurora, Evanston, Addison | CBS News Chicago (IL)
- Libraries in Schaumburg, Aurora latest targets of bomb threats | Daily Herald (IL)
- As local libraries receive bomb threats, Giannoulias defends Illinois’ new law banning book bans | NBC Chicago (IL)
- Palm Beach County Schools reduce bans on LGBTQ library books | OUT SFL (FL)
- Carroll County schools consider book ban after parental concern | WBAL (MD)
- NCAC urges Somerset public schools to repeal a new school rule which violates students’ free speech rights | NCAC
- Controversial League City library committee dismisses book challenges | Houston Public Media (TX)
- Virginia library faces closure amid dispute over LGBTQ+ themed children’s books | WJLA (VA)
- Ozark-Dale County Library sees more memberships despite controversy | WDHN (AL)
- The ‘parental rights’ fanatics have descended on LA | Nation (CA)
- Book censoring battle moves to Fairhope | Alabama Political Reporter (AL)
- County school board temporarily limits controversial book | Carolina Journal (NC)
- Inappropriate content revealed in school reading material | Desoto County Schools (MS)
- Missouri local GOP chair tried to lock gay pastor’s library board reappointment | Yahoo! News (MO)
- Meet the parents who say their rights are ignored by the ‘parental rights’ movement | Michigan Advance (MI)
- Bad decision by Elizabethtown schools — Letter | Lancaster Online (PA)
- Carver County library board upholds reader freedom | Star Tribune (MN)
- Alabama Public Library Service set to creat list of potentially inappropriate books | WBRC (AL)
- Librarians say they were fired for rainbow autism symbols, accused of ‘LGBTQ agenda’ | Washington Post (KS)
- Louise Robbins on impacts of book ban clashes on communities | PBS Wisconsin
- CLN to break from ALA, continues policy work | Couer d’Alene / Post Falls Press (ID)
Privacy & Cybersecurity
- Students’ new surveillance state | UVA Law
- Zero-knowledge cryptography offers a solution to the dangers of corporate surveillance | Forbes
First Amendment, Free Speech, & Civil Liberties
- Mark Satta, Wayne State University–First Amendment violations in anti-drag laws | Academic Minute
- Missouri v. Biden and the crossroads of politics, censorship and free speech | Hill
- ‘It’s really disheartening.’ Milwaukee teacher says anti-CRT ad aired during Packer game used her video without permission | Madison 365 (WI)
- Outraged over admissions policies at Harvard? Take a look at the public schools | 74 Million
- Red states are rolling back the rights revolution | Atlantic
- Salman Rushdie addresses rising authoritarianism during First Amendment Summit in Philadelphia | WHYY
Academic Freedom & Student Speech
- Florida temporarily suspends political ideology surveys on college campuses | Tampa Bay Times (FL)
- Their academic freedom in jeopardy, university faculty in NC, other southern states want out | NC Newsline
- A case of first impression in the Second Circuit | JDSupra
Net Neutrality & Broadband Access
Legislation
- California Legislature sends Newsom his ‘anti-book ban’ bill | Politico (CA)
State & Local Governance
- UCLA law researchers track efforts to ban critical race theory, including dozen CA measures | ABC7
- Debate over ‘parental rights’ is the latest fight in the education culture wars | ABC News
Disinformation & Information Literacy
- China sows disinformation about Hawaii fires using new techniques | New York Times
- Disinformation wars: The fight against fake news in the age of AI | New Scientist
Social Media
- X (Twitter) blocked links to a Democratic political tool for a week | TechCrunch
- When social media censorship gets it wrong: The struggle of breast cancer content creators | USA Today
- Elon Musk’s X sues California over social media law to deal with disinformation, extremism | Mint
International
- ‘Empty shelves with absolutely no books’: Students, parents question school board’s library weeding process | CBC (Canada)
- Everything, to everyone, all at once: How libraries ended up on the front line of Toronto’s urban crisis | Tornoto Star (Canada)
- Librarians to be trained in dealing with abuse after extremist threats | Age (Australia)
Around the Web
- Ed Trust finds an alarming number of negative stereotypes and underrepresentation of people of color in the curriculum taught in U.S. schools | Ed Trust
- Threats against literature, libraries are oldest tricks in the book | Chicago Sun Times
- Stand up for free speech in the face of threats to bomb libraries and ban books | Chicago Sun Times
- The conservative censorship campaign reaches its natural conclusion | Atlantic
- As Detroit schools’ reading scores are on the upswing, educators celebrate Black Reading Month | Michigan Advance
- the Christian home-schooler who made ‘parental rights’ a GOP rallying cry | Washington Post
- County Council celebrates Drag Story Hour | Montgomery County Media
- Library agency director: Content is local decision | Alabama Daily News (AL)
- Closed Book | Slate
- How book-banning campaigns have changed the lives and education of librarians | Sun Journal
- Clarence Page: When is a book ban not a ‘ban’? Officials dance around censorship efforts. | Daily Camera
ALA News
- ALA announces Listening Sessions on revising Freedom to Read Statement
- Using brand behavior to elevate the school library
- Carnegie-Whitney Grant awards up to $5,000 for guides to library resources
- Core Webinar – Best of Core at ALA Annual Conference: Dialogues in Metadata; Bridging the Gap Between Library and Information Science Education and Metadata in Practice
- New textbook elucidates the basic concepts of information law
- New from ACRL – “Practicing Privacy Literacy in Academic Libraries”
- Nic Stone to Keynote AASL National Conference General Session
- ALA to distribute up to $3.6 million in grants as part of Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities
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