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Law For Librarians:

An Overview

MFPE 2025 - Missoula

SCAN

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Hello!

Jen Hossack

MLA Board - ALA Representative

AASL Chapter Delegate

Middle School Librarian - Missoula

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We acknowledge that we are in the aboriginal territories of the Salish and Kalispel people. We honor the path they have always shown us in caring for this place for the generations to come.

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Official Disclaimer

We are not lawyers.

We don’t even play them on TV, although we are open to the idea if the script is good..

If you need legal advice, seek out a professional lawyer with experience in First Amendment law.

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Agenda

Intellectual Freedom & Library Ethics

Challenges & Advocacy

Where to Find Help & Learn More

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Intellectual Freedom & Library Ethics

What really is intellectual freedom and who does it apply to?

What ethics are librarians are guided by?

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Intellectual freedom is the right of unrestricted access

to information and ideas, protected by the First Amendment.

Protected Speech:

The First Amendment applies to �government entities, not private entities. A store owner can

make his or her own rules. The library trustees or school boards

have to set policies within government rules and regulations.

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Did you know?

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We provide the highest level of service to all library users
We uphold the principles of intellectual freedom and resist all efforts to censor library resources.
We protect each library user's right to privacy and confidentiality
We respect intellectual property rights and advocate balance between the interests of information users and rights holders.
We treat co-workers and other colleagues with respect, fairness, and good faith
We do not advance private interests at the expense of library users, colleagues, or our employing institutions.

ETHICS

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We distinguish between our personal convictions and professional actions
We strive for excellence in the profession by maintaining and enhancing our own knowledge and skills
We affirm the inherent dignity and rights of every person. We work to recognize and dismantle systemic and individual biases; to confront inequity and oppression; to enhance diversity and inclusion; and to advance racial and social justice in our libraries, communities, profession, and associations through awareness, advocacy, education, collaboration, services, and allocation of resources and spaces.

ETHICS

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Challenges & Advocacy

What are the steps required to challenge materials?

Who are my allies when responding to a challenge?

Who are the stakeholders and allies who can help me advocate if needed?

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Dos and Dont’s

DON’T

Engage in informal debate
Post identifying information online

Listen to concerns/thank parent for involvement.
Follow policies and procedures
Seek support & help
Prepare for the challenge
Protect yourself (self-care)

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Legalities Abound!

Legal Terms/Cases

You Need to Know

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Did you know?

Censorship

the effort to ban, prohibit, remove, label or restrict library materials, based on the belief that the materials will corrupt children, offend the unwary reader, or undermine moral values.

Policy designed to limit materials rather than provide access to materials is most likely censorship.

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Is that a legal definition?

There is only one term listed below that has a legal definition, allowing it to be upheld in a court of law.

Do you know which one?

Harmful to minors
Pornography
Child pornography
Obscene

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Legal Definition

The legal definition of obscenity, as defined by the U.S. Supreme Court's three-part Miller test, includes material that the average person would find appeals to the "prurient interest," depicts or describes sexual conduct in a "patently offensive" way according to state law, and, when taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value. This definition is narrow and does not include all sexually explicit material, which may be protected by the First Amendment.

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Further Clarification

The three-part Miller test

Appeals to the prurient interest: The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the work, taken as a whole, has a dominant theme that appeals to the shameful or morbid interest in sex.
Patently offensive: The work depicts or describes sexual conduct in a way that is patently offensive, as defined by applicable state law. What is considered "patently offensive" is often based on community standards and can go beyond mere nudity, potentially including deviant or strange conduct.
Lacks serious value: The work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value. This standard is often referred to as the "SLAPS" test.

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Further Clarification

Key considerations

Community standards: "Prurient interest" and "patently offensive" are judged by contemporary community standards, not a national standard.
Not protected: Obscenity is not protected by the First Amendment.
Distinct from indecency: Obscenity is different from indecency, which is a less severe standard that applies to broadcasts but can still be offensive.
Child pornography: The production and distribution of child pornography is illegal and not protected by the First Amendment.
Violence: The Supreme Court has ruled that violence, even when extreme, is not considered obscene under the law.

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Board of Education, Island Tree Union Free School District vs. Pico (1982)

Fragmented decision by court, plurality ruled in favor of students, but not a unanimous decision. Has been debated because of that.

Landmark Supreme Court Case where students challenged removal of books from school libraries.

Regardless, the case did establish that removal of books based on content due to political, or ideological reasons violated students’ right to information.

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Court Cases to Know

Miller v California 1973

Tinker v Des Moines 1969

GInsberg v New York 1968

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Tinker

Miller

Ginsberg

3 part test Obscenity
Patently Offensive as defined by state law
Appeals to prurient interests using community standards
Lacks serious value

Parallels Miller 3 part obscenity test but for harmful to minors

Students do not lose their 1st amendment rights at the school door

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Current Court Cases to Know

NW Assoc of Independent Schools v. Labrador

Little v. Llano County

Parnell et al. vs. School Board of Escambia County

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Things to remember!

Librarians ensure ACCESS

We don’t have to DEFEND content

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Did you know?

FERPA

COPPA

CIPA

Children's Online Privacy and Protection Rule (under 13)

Action may be brought through the Federal Trade Commission, or an Attorney General.

Children’s Internet Protection Act

Requires schools to use internet filters etc, to protect students from harm on the internet.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

Only the government may sue for FERPA, individuals may not.

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Where to Find Help

& Learn More

Resources to prepare you

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Don’t go it alone!

Administration

ALA

Office of Intellectual Freedom YouTube Channel

Colleagues

MLA

Law4Librarians

Panel at PLD Retreat at Chico Oct. 6-7

MFPE Oct 17-18, Bozeman

Questions Survey

https://www.ala.org/advocacy

https://www.mtlib.org/

ALA Helpline Grant

Union Rep

Community

Partners

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Montana Library Accounts to Follow

FB: Montana Library Association

Insta: @mtlibassoc

“Montanans for Libraries” website - MLA

FB: Montana State Library

Insta: @montanastatelibrary

Trust for MT Libraries on Insta @trustformtlibraries

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National Library Accounts to Follow

FB: American Library Association FB

Insta @americanlibraryassociation

FB: American Association of School Librarians

Insta @ala_aasl

FB: The Library of Congress

Insta: @librarycongress

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Thank you!

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Credits.

Presentation Template: SlidesMania

Images: Unsplash

Fonts used in this presentation: Coming Soon and Chelsea Market

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Let’s review some facts.

Elephants

Dogs

Cats

Pandas

Kangaroos

Koalas

Koalas are even more lazy than cats.

Elephants can sense storms.

Dogs can smell your feelings.

Pandas don’t hibernate.

There are more kangaroos than humans in Australia.

Cats use their whiskers as feelers to determine if a space is too small to squeeze through.

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Meet the dream team!

Carlos V.

Mariel S.

Oscar M.

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This is an editable world map.

Showcase places

100% Editable

You can use maps to show your offices or markets. Or as charts, highlighting the countries and adding your data.

You can double click on the desired country and change fill color.

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And this is a timeline or process

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

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Sometimes it only takes one image...

...to tell the story.

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