Council III: Memorials and Tributes

By Amy Carlton | June 27, 2017

American Library Association (ALA) President Julie B. Todaro called the meeting to order at 7:31 on Tuesday morning.

Memorials were read for Eric Moon (M#10), Marija J. Sanderling (M#11), Robert Henry “Bob” Rohlf (M#12), Dorothy Evans (M#13), Joy L. Lowe (M#14), Pauline Manaka (oral acknowledgment), and Amanda Rudd (oral acknowledgment).

Tributes were offered for Harry Bruce (T#2), Keith Michael Fiels (T#3), and the 20th Anniversary of Victory in the Communications Decency Act Case (T#4).

ALA Treasurer Susan Hildreth reviewed the FY2018 Preliminary Budget and the FY2018 Budgetary Ceiling (CD#13.3). A motion to approve a budgetary ceiling of $66.7 million passed.

Ann Dutton Ewbank, chair of the Committee on Legislation (COL), highlighted accomplishments of COL in the past six months (CD#20.1), including the Fight for Libraries campaign, the Corporate Campaign for Funding, and National Library Legislative Day.

Pamela R. Klipsch reported on the recent work of the Intellectual Freedom Committee (CD#19.11–19.13), including recording a spike in hate crimes in libraries; speakers who have been disinvited to universities, schools, and public libraries after protests; and the latest on net neutrality. A motion to adopt “Politics in American Libraries: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights” (CD#19.12) passed, as did a motion to adopt “Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights” (CD#19.13).

ALA Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels reported on the final registration totals for the Annual Conference in Chicago: 16,192 attendees and 6,510 exhibitors, for a total of 22,172 registrants. This compares with 16,395 registrants in Orlando in 2016 and 22,136 registrants for San Francisco in 2015.

The meeting adjourned at 8:14.

AMY CARLTON is a senior editor of American Libraries.

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