Core Resources, Organizations & Policy Archives

Note: Sometimes online resources move to new sites. If you have trouble following Internet links, use a good search engine--or contact a librarian for assistance!

Core Resources

American Library Association. Library Bill of Rights
http://www.ala.org/work/freedom/lbr.html
Includes the full text of the LBOR, plus interpretations and other resources. The LBOR is frequently misquoted; make sure you are familiar with it.

American Library Association, Office of Intellectual Freedom. Intellectual Freedom Manual
In print through American Libraries Editions, or online at http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/intellectualfreedommanual.html
In its sixth edition, released October 2001, the Manual is the standard handbook for interpretations to the Library Bill of Rights, discussions about the right to read, intellectual freedom scenarios, and more.

Organizations To Call On
New York Library Association*
http://www.nyla.org/
252 Hudson Avenue, Albany, NY 12210-1802, 518-432-6952, 800-252-6952
*Your first stop when reporting a challenge or asking a question. At your request, NYLA will forward reported challenges to ALA.

American Library Association, Office for Intellectual Freedom
http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/
50 East Huron Street, Chicago IL 60611, 800-545-2433

New York Civil Liberties Union
http://www.nyclu.org/
125 Broad Street, New York, NY 10004, 212-344-3005

American Civil Liberties Union
http://www.aclu.org/
125 Broad Street, 18th Floor. New York NY 10004, 212-549-2500

Other Organizations
Electronic Frontier Foundation
http://www.eff.org/
454 Shotwell Street, San Francisco, CA 94110, 415-436-9333
Works to protect fundamental rights and civil liberties of users of technology.

Freedom To Read Foundation
http://www.ftrf.org/
An ALA foundation that underwrites many important legal battles, such as the challenges to the Children's Internet Protection Act.

LeRoy C. Merritt Foundation Fund
http://www.merrittfund.org/
An ALA fund that helps librarians who are denied employment rights based on discrimination or because of defense of intellectual freedom.

People for the American Way
http://www.pfaw.org/
2000 M Street, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036 202-467-4999, 800-326-7329
Also involved in key litigation on behalf of free speech.

The NYLA Intellectual Freedom Roundtable maintains a list of other intellectual freedom organizations at http://www.nyla.org/ifrt/index.htm

Online Library Policy Archives
ACQWeb's Directory of Collection Development Policies
http://acqweb.library.vanderbilt.edu/acqweb/cd_policy.html

American Library Association Intellectual Freedom Statements and Policies
http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/statementsandpolicies.html

American Library Association. Internet Use Policies
http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/internetusepolicies.html

Library of Michigan. Four Tests for a Legally-Enforceable Policy
http://www.libofmich.lib.mi.us/publications/trusteesept94.html

State Library of Ohio. Sample Library Policy Statements
http://winslo.state.oh.us/publib/policies.html

Wisconsin Association of Public Librarians. Sample Library Policies for the Small Public Library
http://www.owls.lib.wi.us/info/3ps/policies/sample_policies.htm