Category Archives: Advocacy

Advocacy

ALA urges Senate to reject bill to make Register of Copyrights a presidential appointee

Contact:

Shawnda K. Hines
Press Officer
Washington Office
ALA Washington Office
(202) 628-8410
shines@alawash.org

 

Today the House of Representatives adopted the “Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act of 2017” (H.R. 1695) to make the position of the Register of Copyrights subject to Presidential appointment and Senate confirmation. American Library Association President-Elect James Neal released the following statement in response:

“The American Library Association (ALA) opposes H.R. 1695, the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act of 2017. As this bill moves to the Senate, ALA urges all senators to take special note of what the bill isn’t. Despite the arguments of its proponents, it isn’t related to modernization of the Copyright Office, which it will impede. It isn’t about protecting or advancing the long-term interests of all Copyright Office stakeholders, just its most powerful ones. And, by oddly outsourcing appointment of the Legislative Branch’s own copyright advisor to the Executive Branch, it isn’t the way for Congress to get the nonpoliticized counsel about fairly balanced copyright law on which the economy and public interest depend.
“The Senate overwhelmingly confirmed the Librarian of Congress just nine months ago because she is an expert in modernizing complex information systems in libraries and a proven manager of them: exactly what the Copyright Office needs. ALA urges the Senate to let Dr. Hayden build her own team, including the Register of Copyrights, to accomplish that mission without further delay. H.R. 1695 isn’t the way to get there. We urge the Senate to reject it.”
Advocacy

We’re Having a Postcard Party in the Park!

Clemens Gardens

Despite our snow this week, we are getting Spring Fever here at CMLE HQ – and we want to go see flowers and talk libraries. So we are hosting a Postcard Party in the Park, and you are invited! (You, your family, friends, neighbors, polite strangers you met on the street – it’s a very inclusive invitation!)

CMLE HQ will provide postcards and addresses; you can write out quick notes to your stakeholders to tell them about libraries; and we will mail them. Quick and easy advocacy in action!

Thursday, May 18 from 11:00 to 1:00 we will be sitting at tables behind the Gift Shop at the Munsinger Clemens Gardens. Bring your lunch; we will provide snacks, postcards, pens, and addresses for your legislators. Beverages are available for purchase at the Gift Shop, and water fountains are nearby.

After our poll on the best day for this event, we have added a second time. We will also be there from 4:30 to 6:30 that afternoon. Stop by on your way home from work, or bring a sack dinner and enjoy the beautiful gardens, and the river! Snacks and postcards will again be available to everyone who attends. Bring your kids and sweeties, and let them run around the garden while we have library fun! Continue reading We’re Having a Postcard Party in the Park! →

Advocacy

Grant from the Freedom to Read Foundation

Celebrate the Freedom to Read
with a Grant from the Freedom to Read Foundation

Free people read freely! Would you like to create an exciting program, host a community conversation, or create an exciting display celebrating the freedom to read? Applications are open for libraries and organizations to receive a grant from the Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF) to host a program during Banned Books Week, Sept. 24-30, 2017. Grants of $1,000 or $2,500 are offered through the Judith F. Krug Memorial Fund.

To see examples of the organizations and projects that past recipients have created, and to apply, please visit the grants page of the FTRF website. The application deadline is May 12, 2017.

Each year FTRF distributes grants to non-profit organizations to support activities that raise awareness of intellectual freedom and censorship issues during the annual Banned Books Weeks celebration. Staff at all types of libraries, schools, universities, and community organizations are encouraged to apply.

To be eligible for a grant, organizations must not have been a recipient of an FTRF grant within the past five years. Grantees also receive an ALA 2017 Banned Books Week Promo-Kit, as well as wide promotion and recognition through FTRF.

FTRF Founder Judith F. Krug was a fierce proponent of education and intellectual freedom. During Krug’s lengthy career she worked non-stop to prevent censorship and protect First Amendment rights. Librarians and intellectual freedom advocates have an opportunity to continue this work and stand up for the First Amendment by providing innovative and educational programming to highlight the freedom to read.

Visit the Freedom to Read Foundation online to learn more about past recipients and their projects or to apply. Contact FTRF staff at FTRF@ALA.org or 312-280-4226 with questions.

Advocacy, CMLE

ALSC’s Virtual Library Legislative Day Info

NLLD Logo

From Association for Library Service to Children ALSC’s Virtual Library Legislative Day info:

“Happy Monday, Everyday Advocates!

You don’t have to travel to Washington, DC, this week to make a national difference for children, families, and libraries.

Take action with Virtual Library Legislative Day (VLLD), and let your voice be heard!

The ALSC Advocacy and Legislation Committee has developed resources so you can contact Congressional leaders from home from May 1-5. Check out the Everyday Advocacy website (http://www.ala.org/everyday-advocacy/) for all the details on getting started and staying involved in Virtual Library Legislative Day 2017.

Here are a few of the highlights you’ll find:

Contact Your U.S. Senators and Representatives

Don’t miss this step-by-step guide to finding and connecting with your elected officials. Trust us—it’s easy and only takes a few minutes. (http://www.ala.org/everyday-advocacy/virtual-library-legislative-day/contact-your-us-senators-and-representatives)

Use IMLS Impact Statements by State (Libraries Transform)

Thanks to the tremendous efforts of Everyday Advocates from 25 states who submitted IMLS impact statements in March and April, you’ll find a state-by-state listing of ready-to-tweet sound bytes formatted as Libraries Transform “Because…” statements. Use them to champion libraries in your home state this week and beyond! (http://www.ala.org/everyday-advocacy/virtual-library-legislative-day/use-imls-impact-statements-state)

Use Sample VLLD 17 Tweets

In addition to IMLS impact statements, you’ll find 12 ready-to-go tweets promoting the importance of federal funding for libraries. The best part? All you have to do is click each tweet link, and the text prefills for you! Just log in to Twitter, add handles for your members of Congress, and you’re all set. (http://www.ala.org/everyday-advocacy/virtual-library-legislative-day/use-sample-vlld-17-tweets)

Visit Everyday Advocacy to find all this and more to help you be awesome at the national level this week—right in your own library community. That’s what being an Everyday Advocate is all about!

Warmest regards,

Jenna”

Jenna Nemec-Loise, MLIS

E: jnemecloise@outlook.com | T: (847) 917-3402 | Twitter: @ALAJenna
Division Councilor, Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC)
Advocacy

Let’s Get Practical for Choose Privacy Week

Image result for library choose privacy week

By Michael Robinson
Chair, ALA-IFC Privacy Subcommittee
Associate Professor at the Consortium Library, University of Alaska – Anchorage
Crossposted from ChoosePrivacyWeek.org

The American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom demonstrated its foresight when it started the Choose Privacy Week program in 2010, launching an ongoing program to  raise awareness among libraries and library users about the dangers of government surveillance and demonstrating why privacy is important, especially in light of the growing use of online resources and services.  For several years, the program felt like it was a lone voice for privacy in libraryland.  However, the Snowden revelations in 2013 and the Adobe E-reader kerfuffle in 2014 brought privacy issues to the forefront in the library community and among the general public, and for the most part the case for why privacy is important has been made.  We are now moving into a phase where libraries are looking for ways to improve privacy protections for their users, and in light of this change, we have designated Practical Privacy Practices as the theme for this year’s Choose Privacy Week, taking place May 1- 7, 2017. Continue reading Let’s Get Practical for Choose Privacy Week →