Blog | American Libraries Magazine

Newsmakers: Dawn Logsdon and Lucie Faulknor

Filmmakers discuss new public library documentary, current threats to libraries
By Alison Marcotte | April 23, 2025
Feds Curb Canadian Access to Library on the Border

New Homeland Security rules require separate entry point
By Aviva Bechky | April 14, 2025
Newsmaker: Chris Kluwe

Advocate, author, and former NFL athlete on protesting a MAGA plaque at his local library
By Diana Panuncial | April 4, 2025
Newsmaker: Bob the Drag Queen

Comedian, TV personality discusses first book
By Megan Bennett | March 31, 2025
Tracking the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Libraries

A roundup of the latest executive challenges and efforts to fight back
By Hannah Weinberg | March 19, 2025
The Sustainability Issue

Taking steps toward resilience
March 3, 2025
Green Lending
By David Alvarado and Megan Bennett | March 3, 2025
Sustaining for the Future

Library sustainability leaders grapple with threats, from natural disasters to environmental racism
By Emily Udell | March 3, 2025
Commitments to Conservation

A timeline of sustainability milestones in the library world
March 3, 2025
From Anxiety to Action

Building on a decade of sustainability progress
By Rebekkah Smith Aldrich | March 3, 2025
27 Sustainability Ideas to Implement Right Now
March 3, 2025
Meet the Candidates for ALA President: Lindsay Cronk

Candidates appeal to ALA members for their vote
March 3, 2025

Latest Library Links

3d

Minyoung Kim writes: “In the summer of 2024, I spent eight weeks at the American Antiquarian Society (AAS) for my first paper conservation internship. Under the guidance of Chief Conservator Babette Gehnrich—who has dedicated over 35 years to stewarding this remarkable collection—I had the privilege of engaging in various conservation projects. Through this internship, I came to appreciate how AAS’s vast collection, comprising over four million items, embodies American history not only through its texts and imagery but also through traces of use, repair, and past conservation efforts.”

Past is Present, Apr. 22
3d

ALA and the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) organized the inaugural ALA School Librarians Conference in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, April 15–16. The event brought together a lineup of school librarians and education experts from around the world, with the goal of fostering a reading culture and enhancing school library systems across the region. It was planned in conjunction with the Sharjah Book Authority, the Emirates Library and Information Association, and the Combined Book Exhibit. AASL President Becky Calzada delivered the keynote address.

Sharjah 24 (United Arab Emirates), Apr. 15
4d

Alison Marcotte writes: “About a decade ago, filmmaker Dawn Logsdon started documenting life in libraries throughout the country. Since she began filming, public libraries have been on the front lines of a battlefield over intellectual freedom, facing threats of closures and an unprecedented surge of book challenges and bans. In the upcoming documentary Free for All: The Public Library, which premieres April 29 on PBS’s Independent Lens, Logsdon and codirector Lucie Faulknor trace the public library’s history since the late 19^th century. American Libraries spoke with the duo about libraries in today’s sociopolitical climate and the unsung heroes in library history.”

American Libraries Trend, Apr. 23
4d

After President Trump’s executive order to eliminate the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), states are grappling with how the cuts will affect their services. While South Dakota has not received formal notification of the elimination of IMLS funding, it has suspended its interlibrary loan courier program funded by IMLS grants. The Philadelphia School District has seen the cancellation of a $150,000 IMLS grant that would help it develop a model to reopen school libraries with certified school librarians. The Alabama Senate, meanwhile, has implemented a plan to use state money to replace up to $3 million in lost federal funds. See additional updates from Kentucky, Wisconsin, Arizona, Missouri, Idaho, and Washington.

South Dakota Searchlight, Apr. 15; AL: The Scoop, Mar. 16; Philadelphia Inquirer, Apr. 22; Alabama Political Reporter, Apr. 22; Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal, Apr. 22; Wisconsin Examiner, Apr. 21; Queen Creek Tribune (Tempe, Ariz.), Apr. 22; KCUR-FM (Kansas City, Mo.), Apr. 21; Idaho Capital Sun, Apr. 16; KUOW-FM (Seattle), Apr. 11
4d

Jennifer Chapman writes: “Government information continues to be removed or altered; Executive Orders targeting law firms, non-profits, higher education, and other institutions and individuals are chilling speech; and now the dismantling of agencies like the Institute of Museum and Library Services is directly targeting archives and libraries. As librarians we pride ourselves on finding the unfindable, but finding the unfindable is becoming harder or impossible. What do we do? With this post I hope to provide some practical, concrete ways to support the dissemination of knowledge and help prevent the further erosion of information access.”

RIPS Law Librarian Blog, Apr. 16
5d

Danielle James writes: “In keeping with a lower court ruling, the Michigan Court of Appeals has dismissed a lawsuit that sought to ban 14 ‘sexually explicit’ books from Rockford Public Schools’ libraries. The three members of the Court of Appeals’ Third District unanimously affirmed the lower court’s decision, writing that state laws regarding criminal dissemination of harmful content to minors contain ‘no express language providing a right of private action to enforce the statute.’” The ruling also said the plaintiffs “could not prove they were detrimentally affected by the books as non-current students, among other things.”

MLive, Apr. 15
5d

Free for All: The Public Library, a new documentary “the evolution of public libraries from their revolutionary beginnings to their role today as essential pillars of democracy, education, and community support,” will premiere on Independent Lens on PBS April 29. PBS Books is hosting an in-depth discussion with filmmakers Dawn Logsdon and Lucie Faulknor, and ALA President Cindy Hohl, on Facebook, YouTube, and the PBS app today, April 23, at 8 p.m. Eastern.

PBS Books