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ALA sent a
letter March 20 to Keith E. Sonderling, the new acting director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), warning him not to cut library programs required by federal law. The letter was sent in response to President Trump’s March 14 executive order, “Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy," which calls for IMLS’s elimination. Outlining the Congressional mandate of the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) of 2018, which was signed by President Trump, ALA urged Sonderling to follow provisions of the MLSA and avoid violating federal law. Additionally, the
National Museum and Library Services Board sent Sonderling a
letter outlining IMLS’s statutory obligations....
ALA Public Policy and Advocacy Office, Mar. 20; Publishers Weekly, Mar. 24
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Sarah Tribelhorn writes: “Although artificial intelligence (AI) offers immense potential to enhance services, library workers and others must consider its environmental impact. Training and operating AI tools like large language models, for instance, require substantial computational power. Data centers worldwide also use massive amounts of water to cool AI servers. A 2023 study from Cornell University estimates that by 2027, the water needed for AI could reach 1.7 trillion gallons—more than half of the water the UK uses in a year. Libraries and their decision makers should consider the following strategies when possible.”...
American Libraries column, Mar./Apr.
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Megan Bennett writes and David Alvarado illustrates: “In 1979, Berkeley (Calif.) Public Library became one of the first libraries to start a tool lending program. Today, library patrons can choose from dozens of household options, from lawn mowers to miter saws, cold-press juicers to knife sharpeners. Public libraries continue to adopt this model. These Library of Things collections allow carbon footprint–conscious locals to buy less, monitor their usage of natural resources, appreciate nature, and create a more sustainable environment.
Here’s an illustrated list of 21 popular tools promoting sustainability available in library collections across the US and Canada.”...
American Libraries feature, Mar./Apr.
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Host an online book fair this spring to set students up for summer reading success. With flexible scheduling, you can host your 2025 Follett Book eFair whenever it’s convenient for you, ensuring students are stocked up with great books for the summer and beyond.
Explore Book eFairs.
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Megan Nigh writes: “Getting books into your library is one half of the equation, but the other half is getting them into the hands of your teens. Handselling can be effective, but we can’t always be there for every teen looking for their next read. So how do we engage and entice teens to pick up a book? Check out some ideas [including special teen displays, on-shelf recommendations, and light-hearted gimmicks] that worked for us!”...
Young Adult Library Services Association: The Hub, Mar. 21
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Peter McCabe and Anna Mehler Paperny write: “US authorities said March 21 they are closing Canadian access to a library straddling the Canada-US border. The Haskell Free Library and Opera House is located between the towns of Stanstead, Quebec, and Derby Line, Vermont. The library's entrance is on the Vermont side. Previously, Canadian visitors were able to enter using the sidewalk and entrance on the American side. Under the new rules, Canadians would need to go through a formal border crossing before entering the library.” The Department of Homeland Security told Reuters the move was in response to drug trafficking, but provided no evidence of such activity....
Reuters, Mar. 21
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Christine Park writes: “In 1985, anthropologist James C. Scott published Weapons of the Weak: Everyday Forms of Peasant Resistance, illustrating the ‘prosaic but constant struggle’ of Malaysian villagers indirectly dissenting against the power holders. Since January of this year, there have been seemingly unending and concentrated attacks on [redacted] policies as the new administration has made it a cornerstone of its agenda to combat ‘wokeness’ in America. But it’s fitting to utilize the tools that we have, and not comply in advance. For example, instead of removing any mention of [redacted], we can use visual tools to highlight the absurd and pervasive assault on our First Amendment rights.”...
RIPS Law Librarian Blog, Mar. 20
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Kim Chandler writes: “The Alabama Public Library Service Board of Trustees voted Thursday to withhold state funding from the Fairhope Public Library after complaints from conservative parents about books in the teen section. Board Chairman John Wahl, who is also the chair of the Alabama Republican Party, said board members believe the Fairhope library is in violation of state policies to protect children from inappropriate materials. The books cited by the upset parents included Sold, a National Book Award finalist about a girl who is sold into sexual slavery in India. Read Freely Alabama has
started a fundraiser to try to replace the $42,000 in state funding.”...
Associated Press, Mar. 21
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Barbara M. Pope and Samantha Thompson-Franklin write: “Students with disabilities attending institutions of higher education without accessible library resources and students who are unaware of available resources may be unable to fully participate in or complete their education. Accessibility in library resources and services helps to eliminate those barriers, but the information must be communicated to those who need it, including student disability services, teaching faculty, and students themselves. Ideally, academic libraries should collaborate with campus partners to assess existing resources and services to provide accessible learning and support materials.”...
Journal of Creative Library Practice, Mar. 25
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Mike Olson writes: “Library catalogs have always been battlegrounds where content is not merely described but debated.
President Trump’s Executive Order 14172 directing the renaming of longstanding geographical designations ‘Mount Denali’ and ‘Gulf of Mexico’ to the politically loaded ‘Mount McKinley’ and ‘Gulf of America’ reveal the naked truth of what cataloging has always been: a battlefield where meaning is contested and conquered. When catalogers implement politically motivated terminology changes, they become unwilling performers in a linguistic ritual that normalizes certain worldviews while erasing others. But there’s potential for subversion within these systems.”...
The Scholarly Kitchen, Mar. 25
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Jonah Aragon writes: “There is a growing sentiment that the US shouldn't be relied upon for the technologies that many people and businesses use every day. At Privacy Guides, we generally value technical guarantees over matters like jurisdiction. There is simply no alternative to privacy technologies like strong end-to-end encryption when it comes to protecting your information. Tools from the European Union (EU) also generally benefit from much stronger data protection laws, thanks to the EU's General Data Protection Regulation. Here's a non-exhaustive list of some of our favorites.”...
Privacy Guides, Mar. 19
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Hannah Fingerhut writes: “Iowa cannot, for now, continue to enforce part of its
book ban law, US District Judge Stephen Locher said March 25.
The decision temporarily blocks the part of the law that prohibits school libraries and classrooms from carrying books that depict sex acts. In his decision, Locher stated that the unconstitutional applications of the book restrictions ‘far exceed’ the constitutional applications ‘under both legal standards the Court believes are applicable.’ Expecting an appeal, Locher included an alternative standard through which the restrictions could be considered constitutional, but added he does not believe it should be applied in this case.”...
Associated Press, Mar. 25; May 26, 2023
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Phil Morehart writes: “Hubbard (Ohio) Public Library’s (HPL) oldest patron, Lily Walter, who celebrates her 105th birthday in May, stopped by the library last month to renew her library card. She told the library she has loved reading and libraries for 101 years—as long as she can remember. Lily got her first library card at age four, and it began a lifelong love of the library. She volunteered at HPL during her 80s and 90s and said she was fascinated by learning about library circulation and what people did—and didn’t—read.”...
I Love Libraries, Mar. 14
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