Minors, Libraries, and the Law
Numerous public and school librarians have faced challenges to materials for minors, in school and public libraries. In addition to having an individual parent or patron bringing a challenge, library workers are now seeing organized attempts to move entire collections or seeing local and state leaders attempt to pass laws and legislation limiting access for students and patrons who are minors. While groups may claim that materials are obscene or harmful to minors, those terms are carefully defined in law, and courts have set limits on when they can be applied to books and other information resources. Learn how to address these challenges from a First Amendment lens and how to navigate these challenges when such claims are made.
Theresa Chmara, Freedom to Read Foundation General Counsel, and Leila Green Little, who became an advocate when her local library removed some of her kids’ favorite titles form the shelves, will share their first-hand knowledge and experience.
Learning Goals and Outcomes:
- Understand the laws addressing materials claimed to be obscene, child pornography, or harmful to minors and the role of the First Amendment
- Learn ways to respond to these accusations and how to invite others to support library workers and school librarians who are facing challenges
- Learn steps you can take when you are directly accused of distributing materials claimed to be “ harmful to minors” or otherwise in violation of the law
Theresa Chmara is an attorney in Washington, DC. She also is the General Counsel of the Freedom to Read Foundation. She is the author of Privacy and Confidentiality Issues: A Guide for Libraries and their Lawyers (ALA 2009). She has been a First Amendment lawyer for over thirty years and is a frequent speaker on intellectual freedom issues in libraries. She is a contributing author for the Intellectual Freedom Manual, published by the Office of Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association. She also served as an instructor for the Lawyers for Libraries training seminars, for the Law for Librarians training seminars, and for the ALA First Amendment and Library Services eCourse.
Leila Green Little is a rural mom and intellectual freedom advocate. She has been fighting against censorship in her local public library system since 2021. In 2022, she and six friends became plaintiffs in the federal lawsuit Leila Green Little, et. al, v. Llano County, et. al, which resulted in a federal court issuing a preliminary injunction requiring Llano County to return the censored books to the catalog and shelves of the public library. The case is ongoing and awaits an en banc panel opinion from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals hearing in September 2024. Leila was galvanized to learn more about librarianship and earned her Master of Library Science degree from the University of North Texas in spring 2024. She and her 6 co-plaintiffs were the recipients of the 2023 Sam G. Whitten Award for Intellectual Freedom, given by the Texas Library Association. Previously, Ms. Little earned her master’s degree from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and had a fulfilling career as a speech-language pathologist specializing in working with patients with head and neck cancer. She likes to read banned books and lives on a cattle ranch with her husband of 19 years and their two kids.
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