Intellectual Freedom News 3/28/2025
Highlights
- Penguin Random House’s ‘Banned on the Run’ Event: US$10,000 | Publishing Perspectives
- ALA, Unite Against Book Bans share Right to Read Day theme and actions | ALA
- Tracking the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Libraries | American Libraries
- Board Advising IMLS Tells Acting Director Mandates ‘Cannot’ Be Hindered | Publishers Weekly
- US federal judge stops enforcement of Iowa school book ban again | Jurist News
Censorship
- 10 more books face statewide ban from public school libraries | Island News (SC)
- ‘New attempt to censor books’ at CT library targets LGBTQ+ content | Hartford Courant (CT)
- Alabama board defunds local library for failing to protect teens from ‘inappropriate’ books | CNN (AL)
- From compliance to defunding: The case over Fairhope’s library creates confusion | AL.com (AL)
- Alabama board defunds local library in first action under new book ban law | Guardian (AL)
- Volunteer group raises funds to support Fairhope Library amid state funding crisis | WPMI (AL)
- Alabama halted a library’s funding. Supporters raised the cash in days. | Washington Post (AL)
- Parents & lawyers fight back after school board bans “indecent” LGBTQ+ trivia game | LGBTQ Nation (NC)
- Athens-Limestone County Public Library Board of Trustees releases statement on ‘age-appropriate material’ concerns | WHNT (AL)
- CT library meeting on censoring LGBTQ+ content canceled after large crowd shows up | Hartford Courant (CT)
- Library groups react to sudden firing of Alabama director: ‘Dark day’ | Alabama.com (AL)
- Radnor students walk out of school to protest book bans | Philadelphia Inquirer (PA)
- US government blocks Canadian access to border-straddling library | Reuters (VT)
- ACLU, Education MN sue St. Francis School District over controversial book ban | KARE (MN)
- JoCo mom who pushed book bans sues school district, invoking Trump ‘indoctrination’ order | Kansas City Star (KS)
- Salem debates school library book restrictions amid ‘freedom to read’ bill | KATU (OR)
- Banned books of Alabama. These 25 face censorship in local libraries throughout AL | Montgomery Advertiser (AL)
- Rep. Berny Jacques pressures Largo officials over LGBTQ displays in public library | Florida’s Voice (FL)
- Elizabeth School District defies federal order on book ban | 9News (CO)
- Pasco to offer children’s library card to help parents manage access | Tampa Bay Times (FL)
Privacy & Cybersecurity
- IRS nears deal with ICE to share addresses of suspected undocumented immigrants | Washington Post
- Hegseth Disclosed Secret War Plans in a Group Chat | New York Times
- Troops to start surveillance at border | Politico
First Amendment & Civil Rights
- DOGE Descends on the Institute for Museum and Library Services | ArtNet
- Library Advocates Rally as Trump Targets Federal Funding | New York Times
- Who Will Defend the Defenders of the Constitution? | New York Times
- Trump Revokes Security Clearances for Biden, Harris, and More. Here’s the Full List and What That Means | TIME
- Trump Threatens to Jail Tesla Vandals in El Salvador Prisons | New York Times
- Trump Administration Rescinds Sensitive Locations Policy: What It Means for Institutions of Higher Education | JDSupra
- Immigrants and Freedom of Speech | New York Times
- Trump topples civil rights offices at DHS | Hill
- Columbia Student Hunted by ICE Sues to Prevent Deportation | New York Times
- Federal court allows free speech lawsuit against Lafayette Library Board member to continue | KADN (LA)
- Knight First Amendment Institute writes open letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, urges openness to criticism | Columbia Spectator
- ACLU Responds to Trump’s Anti-Voter Executive Order | ACLU
Academic Freedom & Student Speech
- Academia Confronts a Watershed Moment at Columbia, and the Right Revels | Seattle Times
- FSU’s Intellectual Freedom Survey faces backlash over concerns about academic freedom | FSU (FL)
- VICTORY: Federal court blocks Texas A&M’s unconstitutional drag ban | FIRE (TX)
- After Trump’s attacks on universities, campuses realize: If it can happen there, it can happen here | Philadelphia Inquirer
Legislation
- Iowa House passes bills establishing gen ed requirements and a ‘School of Intellectual Freedom’ at UI | Iowa Public Radio (IA)
- House bills address college activism | Southeast Iowa Union (IA)
- Texas Senate approves bill changing how schools select library books | San Antonio Express-News (TX)
- ‘Obscene performance’ ban added to child abuse bill, official misconduct expungements weighed | WLFI (IN)
- Debate Over HB 4: Alabama’s Library Obscenity Bill | Calhoun Journal (AL)
- New bill would dissolve Arkansas State Library and its board, set new library funding criteria | Arkansas Advocate (AR)
- From Batman to the Bible, potential new Florida law opens door to a single complaint banning graphic novels or manga in state schools, libraries, and even reading lists | Popverse (FL)
- Texas lawmakers advance bill that makes it a crime for teachers to assign “Catcher in the Rye” | Popular Information (TX)
- Republicans Prioritize Censorship, Discrimination Over Freedoms, Economic Growth with SB 1’s Passage | Ohio House of Representatives (OH)
- ‘Freedom to Read Act’ filed in TN legislature would overturn ‘Age Appropriate Materials Act’ of 2022 | WKRN (TN)
State & Local Governance
- State legislators discuss DEI and Critical Race Theory at Sioux City Town Hall | KTIV (IA)
- State Library Board votes to push conformity with Trump executive order on ‘gender ideology’ with funding threats looming | 1819 News (AL)
- A plea for governor, president to visit Portsmouth Public Schools amid plans to abolish Dept. of Education | WAVY (VA)
- Wisconsin school board races attract attention from national conservative groups | Wisconsin Public Radio (WI)
Net Neutrality & Broadband Access
- Rep. Hudson Wants to Rewrite Many BEAD Requirements | Broadband Breakfast
Social Media & AI
- X Suspends Accounts in Turkey After Government Removal Requests | SocialMediaToday
- X sues Narendra Modi’s government over content removal in new India censorship fight | NBC News
Journalism & Media
- PBS and NPR Prepare for Showdown With Congress | New York Times
- Latin Times: OA Journalist Sue Kari Lake, Trump Admin Over Outlet Shutdown: ‘The Chilling Of First Amendment Speech’ | Government Accountability Project
Disinformation & Media Literacy
- Elon Musk’s Soap Operas for Conspiracy Buffs | Atlantic
- The war on truth: how climate disinformation threatens global action | Cable
International
- Border-straddling library raises $140K for renovations after U.S. limits Canadian access | CBC (Canada)
- As Trump’s Policies Worry Scientists, France and Others Put Out a Welcome Mat | New York Times (Europe)
- Court overturns ban on Cheeming Boey’s book ‘When I Was A Kid 3’ | Free Malaysia Today (Malaysia)
- Turkey’s social media ban has been lifted, but VPN usage is still high | TechRadar (Turkey)
- ‘It’s disinformation’: Turkish state TV avoids any coverage of mass street protests | Guardian (Turkey)
Around the Web
- Christian nationalism’s war on libraries: ‘We only need one book’ | AL.com
- How our public schools are tied to the health of our democracy | Salon
- These Librarians Won’t Let America’s Fever Hit Fahrenheit 451 | Texas Observer
- With book bans, Texas librarians are on the frontlines of a culture war | Houston Chronicle
- The Power of Uncensored Stories: Why Diverse Voices Matter Now More Than Ever | Good Men Project
- ‘Murder the Truth’: Investigative Journalist on Trump’s Assault on the First Amendment | Zeteo
- Rachel Maddow & More MSNBC Anchors Read the First Amendment in Chilling New Promo | Wyoming News Now
- As Crises Grip Colleges, More Students Than Ever Are Set to Enroll | New York Times
- Five State and Local Entities Safeguarding Our Civil Rights | ACLU
- The Basic Contradiction Exposed In Indiana’s Debate Over Charter School Funding | 74
- Librarians provide insight on book bans, Minnesota state law on removal of books from libraries | KARE
- The Humanizing Power of Critical Race Theory | Yes!
ALA News
- Sylvia Knight Norton announces retirement as AASL Executive Director
- Janet Hyunju Clarke wins the 2025 ALA Medal of Excellence Award
- Core Webinar – Best of Core Forum: Saying Less, Asking More; Expand Your Impact with Coaching
- Core Webinar – Best of Core Forum: Integrating Linked Data into Library Workflows
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