Law and the Right to Read: What Your Trustees Need to Know
eLearning
Description
Trustees have a special role in upholding the right to read. Many elected and appointed trustees seek out their role because of their love of the library or their local school district, but they may not understand why it’s critical to uphold the First Amendment right to access information for their fellow community members or students.
In this session, Trustees will learn the basics of intellectual freedom related to their role, and how First Amendment rights are related to policies and access in our public- and public-school libraries. They will be given the tools needed to support staff and patrons’ rights, including their own, and tackle challenges that arise in their community.
Learning Objectives
- An understanding of publicly funded libraries responsibilities to protect the right to read and access the library under the First and Fourteenth Amendment.
- An understanding of proposed laws, ordinances, and administrative rules intended to censor materials or restrict library workers’ ability to provide information to their community Strategies for effective advocacy to preserve the right to read, including networking with local and statewide groups.
- Where to find resources through the American Library Association, United for Libraries, and the Freedom to Read Foundation that help fight censorship.
Presenters
Deborah Caldwell-Stone is Director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom and Executive Director of the Freedom to Read Foundation. For over twenty years she has worked closely with library professionals and library trustees on a wide range of intellectual freedom issues related to library service in the United States. She has served on the faculty of the ALA-sponsored Lawyers for Libraries and Law for Librarians workshops and is a contributor to the 10th edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual. She has contributed articles on law, policy, and intellectual freedom to American Libraries and other publications.
Theresa Chmara is an attorney in Washington, DC. She also is the General Counsel of the Freedom to Read Foundation. She is the author of Privacy and Confidentiality Issues: A Guide for Libraries and their Lawyers (ALA 2009). She has been a First Amendment lawyer for over thirty years and is a frequent speaker on intellectual freedom issues in libraries. She is a contributing author for the Intellectual Freedom Manual published by the Office of Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association. She also served as an instructor for the Lawyers for Libraries training seminars and an instructor for the American Library Association First Amendment and Library Services E-Course.
How to Register
United for Libraries Statewide Partners
United for Libraries statewide partners in MA, MD, MI, MS, ND, NE, OR, SC, SD, and VA receive free registration.
Statewide Partner Registration
General Registration
The cost for this course is $79. ALA members receive a 10% discount; United for Libraries members receive a 35% discount. Additional discounts apply for the purchase of three or more seats.
Freedom to Read Foundation Member Registration
You will receive a coupon code from the Freedom to Read Foundation. Enter that coupon code at checkout to receive free registration.
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