Category: Legislation
Support Freedom for Student Journalists
The critical work of journalists in a democratic society requires protecting freedom of expression. A free press cannot flourish where writers fear censorship or retaliation. How did you celebrate #StudentPressFreedom on Wednesday, January 30?
Dickey Part Two…Now What’s the Deal?
Though he threatened to veto it, President Donald Trump signed the consolidated appropriations bill, H.R. 1625, into law on Friday, March 23rd, 2018. The essential text of the original Dickey Amendment from 1996 remains. So where is the change that was reported?
Dickey: How One Congressman Helped Ban Research on America’s Gun Problem…and Lived to Regret It
Question: How is the United States’ preeminent body tasked with preventing disease and poor public health to accomplish its mandate if it is barred from doing so?
Carpenter v. United States: A Battle for Privacy Rights
As part of a 2011 robbery investigation, law enforcement obtained location data from Timothy Carpenter without a warrant. After his subsequent arrest, Carpenter appealed the decision as a breach of his Fourth Amendment rights, and the case has been heard by the Supreme Court. As technologies like cell phones collect increasing loads of data about us, and as that data paints a more detailed picture of our everyday lives, have privacy laws become outdated?
New Florida Law Should Have Advocates of Intellectual Freedom Watching Closely
On July 1, 2017, Gov. Rick Scott (R) of Florida signed into law House Bill 989, which revised district school board responsibilities related to reviewing and adopting public K-12 instructional materials.
Origins
On June 26, 2017, hearings began in the U.S. District Court for Arizona to decide the fate of Tucson’s Unified School District’s Mexican American Studies program. It has been seven years for this educational program to get its day in court. That’s at least two generations of high-school students, who because of narrow minded political concerns, were denied the right to study their own origins.
20 Years of Online Free Speech
On this day 20 years ago, the United States Supreme Court issued a landmark opinion striking down the Communications Decency Act (“CDA”). This statute constituted the first attempt by Congress to regulate the content of material on the Internet. The CDA made it a crime to place content on the Internet that was ‘indecent’ or ‘patently offensive’ if that content would be accessed by minors under the age of 18.
With Freedom Comes Great Responsibility
More than 500 librarians and library supporters attended Library Legislative Day in Washington D.C. on May 1-2. With the Institute of Library and Museum Services threatened for elimination with President Trump’s ‘skinny budget,’ this year’s event saw more attendees at Library Legislative Day than any previous year. This year, I was fortunate to attend as a member of the New Mexico delegation.
Defend Your Institutions: Dissent
The biggest questions concerning Intellectual Freedom in this country have always revolved around the right to speak, write, or otherwise express dissent on any given topic; most importantly on political or social issues.
Top 5 Questions About Florida’s New Instructional Materials Bill
The Florida legislature is well on its way to approving a bill that could have dramatic consequences for Florida students’ and teachers’ intellectual freedom. Proponents of HB 989 / SB 1210 claim that the bill improves transparency and gives parents a stronger voice in their children’s education. But we have to ask questions about these claims.