Censorship: Organizations and Websites

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(American Library Association) Established December 1, 1967, the Office for Intellectual Freedom is charged with implementing ALA policies concerning the concept of intellectual freedom as embodied in the Library Bill of Rights, the Association’s basic policy on free access to libraries and library materials. The goal of the office is to educate librarians and the general public about the nature and importance of intellectual freedom in libraries.

(ACLU) The ACLU dares to create a more perfect union — beyond one person, party, or side. Our mission is to realize this promise of the United States Constitution for all and expand the reach of its guarantees.

(BRI) The Bill of Rights Institute is a civic education organization with a network of over 70,000 history and civics educators, thousands of classroom-ready history and civics resources and annual student and teacher programming.

(NCAC) This organization is an alliance of 50 national non-profit organizations dedicated to protect freedom of thought, inquiry and expression by educating its members and the public about the dangers of censorship.

(American Library Association) Unite Against Book Bans is a national initiative to empower readers everywhere to stand together in the fight against censorship.

(Bill of Rights Institute) The Bill of Rights is one of the three founding documents. It was strongly influenced by the Virginia Declaration of Rights, written by George Mason as well as English documents such as the Magna Carta, the Petition of Right, the English Bill of Rights, and the Massachusetts Body of Liberties.

(Office of Information Policy) The United States Department of Justice Guide to the Freedom of Information Act is a comprehensive legal treatise on the FOIA. The Guide includes detailed discussions of the FOIA’s procedural requirements, nine exemptions, and litigation considerations. Each section contains a detailed analysis of the key judicial opinions issued on the FOIA. Each chapter of the Guide will be updated by OIP on a rolling basis as significant new developments in FOIA occur.

(United States Department of Justice) This site can help you determine if filing a FOIA request is the best option for you and help you create your request when you’re ready.

(Nebraska Library Commission) A list of resources (organizations, webinars, publications, etc.) on intellectual freedom and censorship, intended for use by Nebraska librarians.

(The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) A treaty adopted by the United Nations in 1966, recognizing certain civil and political rights of all people.

(United States Courts) Among other cherished values, the First Amendment protects freedom of speech. The U.S. Supreme Court often has struggled to determine what exactly constitutes protected speech. The following are examples of speech, both direct (words) and symbolic (actions), that the Court has decided are either entitled to First Amendment protections, or not.

(Teachers College, Columbia University) As school leaders pull more books off library shelves and curriculum lists amid a fraught culture war, we explore the impact, legal landscape and history of book censorship in schools.