Intellectual Freedom News 11/21/2025
Highlights
- ALA Sounds Alarm as White House Undermines Programs Supporting School and Academic Libraries | ALA
- Champion of the right to read | Cranston Herald (RI)
- Missouri court strikes down 2022 law that pulled library books off shelves | Missouri Independent (MO)
- American Library Association unveils shortlist for 2026 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction | ALA
Censorship
- Tensions rise in ALA standoff at Fremont County Library Board meeting | Gillette News Record (WY)
- ‘Antivirus for libraries’: How a Texas startup is capitalizing on school book bans | San Antonio Express-News (TX)
- ‘Confused, angry:’ APLS revokes Fairhope Public Library’s remaining 2025 state funds amid dispute | Alabama Reflector (AL)
- Alabama board revokes library’s funds amid dispute | Chattanooga Times Free Press (AL)
- Tenn. official’s order undermines our public libraries | Free Speech Center (TN)
- Harford school board votes to appeal state’s decision over controversial book | FOX45 News (MD)
- As Book Bans Spike, Public and School Librarians In Wake County Juggle Divergent Challenges | INDY Week (NC)
- Library funding, board seats on Tuesday’s commission agenda | Chronicle Online (FL)
- NCAC opposes book bans at Benton School District in Arkansas | NCAC (AR)
- Book banners are at it again, targeting a SLO County school district | Opinion | San Luis Obispo Tribune (CA)
- Portage parent complains about book accessed from teacher by fifth grader | Chicago Tribune (IN)
- 2 Washington County libraries receive ‘challenges,’ state organization reports | Hillsboro News Times (OR)
- Christian County Library finalizes removing American Library Association from their policies. | KSMU (MO)
Privacy & Cybersecurity
- Border Patrol is monitoring US drivers and detaining those with ‘suspicious’ travel patterns | AP
- Advocates Fear ‘Surveillance Creep’ If HPD Starts Using AI To Write Reports | Honolulu Civil Beat (HI)
- Flock surveillance cameras raise privacy concerns amid immigration enforcement | FOX12 (OR)
First Amendment & Civil Rights
- ACLU Comment on Department of Education’s Dismantling of Core Civil Rights and Education Offices | ACLU
- The Unraveling of the Justice Department | New York Times
- Missouri court strikes down book ban law that pushed libraries to remove hundreds of titles | NPR (MO)
- We Came Here Legally. ICE Locked Us Up Anyway. | New York Times
- Court rules Ohio school district’s pronoun policy violates First Amendment rights | UpNorthLive (OH)
- As Trump Targets Antifa in U.S., Rubio Labels European Groups as Terrorists | New York Times
- Federal judge orders schools from 14 Texas districts remove Ten Commandments displays, citing First Amendment | Click2Houston (TX)
- Texas Governor Declares Muslim Civil Rights Group a ‘Terrorist Organization’ | New York Times (TX)
Academic Freedom & Student Speech
- Judge indefinitely bars Trump from fining UC over alleged discrimination | NPR (CA)
- AFT’s Weingarten and AAUP’s Wolfson on Texas A&M University System Board of Regents’ Vote to Censor Curriculum | AFT (TX)
- Iowa Board of Regents tables vote on UI intellectual freedom center bylaws | KCCI (IA)
- Indiana Professor Removed From Class Over White Supremacy Lesson | New York Times (IN)
- Crackdowns in the Classroom: Texas Targets Curriculum and Campus Speech | Texas AFT (TX)
- New Florida Curriculum on Communism is a “Dangerous Recasting” of McCarthyism | PEN America (FL)
- Research breakthroughs often come through collaborations − attacks on academic freedom threaten this vital work | Times Union
- UT takes disciplinary action against students after Tower sit-in | Daily Texan (TX)
Legislation
- Massachusetts anti-book ban bill up in senate | WWLP (MA)
State & Local Governance
- Alabama Public Library Service to vote on controversial gender ideology amendment this month | Alabama Gazette (AL)
- Texas will soon issue a required reading list for all K-12 students. Here’s what to know | Houston Chronicle (TX)
- Sacramento leaders take aim at a 76-year-old comic book ban | KCRA (CA)
- Supervisors approve appointment of county representative on MPL board despite objections | Times-Republican (IA)
Journalism & Media
- NPR reaches settlement protecting public radio distribution and First Amendment rights | NPR
- Former FCC chairs urge agency to repeal ‘news distortion’ policy invoked by Trump administration | NBC News
Social Media & AI
International
- Court refused to ban book on Høiby just as another book was released | News in English (Norway)
Around the Web
- Understanding the Right’s Antisemitic Turn | New York Times
- Students Aren’t Being Indoctrinated. The Real Problem Is Mistrust of Teachers | EducationWeek
- As America Marks 250 Years, New Op-Ed and Documentary Spotlight Black Librarians’ Fight for Memory and Access | WRAL
- 2025 Holiday Gift Guide for Librarians and Book Lovers | American Libraries
- Closure of Biggest Distributor of Spanish-Language Books Tied in Part to Federal Spending Cuts | PEN America
- Baltimore County Public Library reverses course on eliminating 14 part-time positions | Baltimore Sun
- Inside Florida’s Book Ban Fight: How Communities Push Back | PEN America
- Employees for 23-branch Columbus library announce campaign to unionize | Columbus Dispatch (OH)
- Culture War Dispatches: Courts, voters and faith groups weigh in | Philadelphia Gay News
- Banned Aid, Censorship is So 1984 | Bohemian
- When teachers start self-censoring | Hawaii Tribune Herald
- Baltimore County library CEO faces backlash after abrupt librarian layoffs and rehiring | Baltimore Banner
- “The Librarians” Depicts Violent Intimidation as Librarians Fight Book Bans | Payday Report
- ‘The Librarians’ tackles book bans fearlessly, and with hope | Valley Reporter
ALA News
- Core Webinar: Beyond Your Department: Uniting Catalogers
- An updated handbook on classifying and fixing dirty data
- Elevate with RUSA’s Fall 2025 Online Learning
- Now Accepting Nominations: 2026 David Cohen/EMIERT Multicultural Award
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