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Intellectual freedom stories from a shifting landscape
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2020
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Library Journal Review
Editor Nye (library director, Santa Fe Community Coll.) argues that storytelling has a long tradition among librarians and that it is a vital tool in promoting intellectual freedom. Stories, she says, combat misinformation and strengthen trust between libraries and their community. Nye spent 15 years listening to the stories of librarians who have faced challenges to intellectual freedom; she categorizes them by topic, including difficult conversations and cultural sensitivity. The resulting compilation provides enlightening, real-world examples that will serve as a road map for other librarians. Megan Lott describes how at Rutgers University Library, two pieces of art by Joseph Arsulo were removed when a young Christian woman objected to a piece entitled Vitruvian Man; though the incident resulted in censorship, Lott learned hard lessons about the importance of preparing for challenges. Daniel Forsman, of the Stockholm Public Library, writes about fielding complaints after hosting a panel on which a figurehead of Sweden's neo-Nazi movement spoke. Rain Bloom and Carrie Kruse discuss what happened when a Black Lives Matter die-in was held at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's library. VERDICT Essential reading for all libraries, especially public libraries, and as a textbook for library students.--Dave Pugl, Ela Area P.L., Lake Zurich, IL
CHOICE Review
As Janice Del Negro eloquently states in this book's foreword, "intellectual freedom ... is the bedrock on which libraries stand." This book comprises librarians' stories of how they have grappled with intellectual freedom in their own lives and libraries. Librarians must ask themselves how they can address the issues affecting their communities while "moving toward becoming a catalyst for change and social justice," as James Allen Davis and Hadiya Evans write in their contribution. These stories provide lived examples from banned book challenges to drag queen story time to a Black Lives Matter die-in and much more. They will spur librarians to reflect on the programs they have organized and give them ideas for future programming and responding to community backlash. A welcome feature is the "Reflection Question" section at the end of each of the book's six parts. The conclusion asks readers to share their stories around intellectual freedom and librarianship as an ongoing project. Now more than ever, librarians should use their libraries to mobilize change, and they must continue to listen to and learn from one another. [Disclosure: Choice is part of the American Library Association, which published this book.] Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers, faculty, and professionals. --Barbara Ghilardi, Fairfield University
Summary

Intellectual freedom is a complex concept that democracies and free societies around the world define in different ways but always strive to uphold. And ALA has long recognized the crucial role that libraries play in protecting this right. But what does it mean in practice? How do library workers handle the ethical conundrums that often accompany the commitment to defending it? Rather than merely laying out abstract policies and best practices, this important new collection gathers real-world stories of intellectual freedom in action to illuminate the difficulties, triumphs, and occasional setbacks of advocating for free and equal access to information for all people in a shifting landscape. Offering insight to LIS students and current practitioners on how we can advance the profession of librarianship while fighting censorship and other challenges, these personal narratives explore such formidable situations as

presenting drag queen story times in rural America; a Black Lives Matter "die-in" at the undergraduate library of the University of Wisconsin-Madison; combating censorship at a prison library; hosting a moderated talk about threats to modern democracy that included a neo-Nazi spokesman; a provocative exhibition that triggered intimidating phone calls, emails, and a threat to burn down an art library; calls to eliminate non-Indigenous children's literature from the collection of a tribal college library; and preserving patrons' right to privacy in the face of an FBI subpoena.
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