Happy Birthday, Raina Telgemeier!
Raina Telgemeier, who celebrates her 42nd birthday on May 26, is a bestselling, award-winning author and illustrator of graphic novels for kids and young adults. Her work is based on the idea of helping children and young adults realize the value and importance of their own stories, despite the pressures they may feel from family or peers.
Intellectual Freedom News 5/24/19
Alexandria School District pulls two books from program; Social media censorship is hurting those on the margins, EFF project contends; Why Are SAT takers getting an ‘Adversity Score’? Here’s some context
Intellectual Freedom & Privacy Events in our Nation’s Capitol
So many great intellectual freedom and privacy events during ALA Annual Conference in Washington D.C. You won’t want to miss a single minute.
Keeping Archives Active: Access to the Past for a More Peaceful Future
By preserving stories from all sides, supporting efforts to teach history in a holistic fashion, and honoring multiple perspectives, vibrant libraries and archives can be an important ingredient in moving beyond sectarianism.
Happy Birthday, Jodi Picoult!
Each time I read one, I asked myself, “What makes her books so compelling?” It could be her writing, with its fast-paced plot lines peppered with thoroughly researched details. It could be the twist endings, which keep me on edge as I read up until the very last page. But mostly, I think it’s the way she fearlessly tackles difficult, hard-to-grasp topics: abortion, teen suicide, faith, rape, euthanasia, racism, school shootings, LGBTQ+ rights.
Intellectual Freedom News 5/17/2019
Laurie Halse Anderson Joins Colson Whitehead at the FTRF’s 50th Anniversary Celebration; First amendment Vitals: Taking Gen Z’s pulse on Free Expression and Inclusion; Intellectual freedom for the incarcerated
Intellectual Freedom for the Incarcerated
The incarcerated are an oft-forgotten demographic, but this quality shouldn’t dampen their fundamental human-rights. For US prisoners, access to library materials is wrought with roadblocks built by a tumultuous past.
Happy Birthday to Frequently Challenged Author Lauren Myracle
Myracle writes about the struggles of teenagehood in the internet age and the range of bad decisions that can get made (and, unfortunately, fully documented and preserved). Her characters are compelling by virtue of both their at-times shallowness and their devotion to the ideals of friendship.
Paywall: The Business of Scholarship – A review & discussion with Director Jason Schmitt
The documentary, which is well worth watching, delves into the large profit margins of the major scholarly publishers and the risings costs to subscribers, the growing open access movement, and the paradox posed by a system where much of the labor force (authors and editors) work for free, then have their institutions pay to access the content later.
BlacklistLA: Angelenos, Art, and Advocacy After Hours
The term blacklist immediately conjures notions of silence and censorship and an expansive chronology of historical struggles toward free expression and intellectual freedom. But this is a blacklist, I’m fond of stressing, that reinforces concepts of positive community-building and challenging people to rethink how we live and see our urban environment.