Intellectual Freedom

First Amendment to the Constitution

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

American Library Association on Intellectual Freedom:

American Library Association: The ALA maintains a vigorous program to defend libraries' rights to shelve and circulate materials representing all points of view to all people regardless of race, religion, age, national origin or social and political views.
Office for Intellectual Freedom

California State Law regarding library patron confidentiality:
Government Code 6267.

All registration and circulation records of any library which is in whole or in part supported by public funds shall remain confidential and shall not be disclosed to any person, local agency, or state agency except as follows:

(a) By a person acting within the scope of his or her duties within the administration of the library.
(b) By a person authorized, in writing, by the individual to whom the records pertain, to inspect the records.
(c) By order of the appropriate superior court.

As used in this section, the term "registration records" includes any information which a library requires a patron to provide in order to become eligible to borrow books and other materials, and the term "circulation records" includes any information which identifies the patrons borrowing particular books and other material. This section shall not apply to statistical reports of registration and circulation nor to records of fines collected by the library.

Censorship

Free Expression: Established to counter attacks on the First Amendment right to free expression. Book Banning, Burning, and Censorship, a multimedia Presentation by Book Stacks Unlimited, Inc.
Banned Books On-line: Welcome to this special exhibit of books that have been the objects of censorship or censorship attempts. The books featured here, ranging from Ulysses to Little Red Riding Hood, have been selected from the indexes on the On-line Books Page.
National coalition Against Censorship
Index on Censorship: A bi-monthly magazine for free speech.
The Child Online Protection Act: Decency and the Internet Revised

"We are not afraid to entrust the American people with unpleasant facts, foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values. For a nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is afraid of its people."

John F. Kennedy, 1962

Organizations and Associations

American Civil Liberties Union
Center for Democracy and Technology: The Center's mission is to develop and advocate public policies that advance constitutional civil liberties and democratic values in new computer and communications technologies.
Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition: Internet Users, Publishers, Online Service Providers, Non-Profit Groups, and Civil Liberties Advocates Launch Court Challenge to Fight The Communications Decency Act.
Coalition for Networked Information: The Coalition for Networked Information, is a joint project of the Association of Research Libraries, CAUSE, and EDUCOM. The Coalition's mission is to promote the creation of and access to information resources in networked environments in order to enrich scholarship and to enhance intellectual productivity.
Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility: CPSR is a public-interest alliance of computer scientists and others interested in the impact of computer technology on society.
Electronic Frontier Foundation - EFFweb: A non-profit civil liberties organization working in the public interest to protect privacy, free expression, and access to online resources and information.
Taxpayer Assets Project
Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression
Voters Telecommunications Watch: VTW is a volunteer organization, concentrating on legislation as it relates to telecommunications and civil liberties.

Legal and Government Information

THOMAS: Legislative Information on the Internet: In the spirit of Thomas Jefferson, a service of the U.S. Congress through its Library. Includes full text of legislation, the Constitution, and information on the House and Senate.
Intellectual Property Magazine
Infosurf's Information Resources on Copyright

Privacy

HotWired and Wired Privacy Archive: Fight for Your Right to Electronic Privacy!

Censorship and Journalism

First Amendent Cyber-Tribune
First Amendment News
Freedom of Information Center: A reference and research library in the University of Missouri School of Journalism on the Campus of the University of Missouri-Columbia.
MONITORS: A Journal of Human Rights and Technology
Reporters Committee Home Page

Additional Resources

FACT Web: The FACT Web site is intended to be a resource for anyone wanting to learn about the First Amendment
Yahoo - Society and Culture:Civil Rights
Yahoo - Government: Law: Privacy

Author: Beverly Ryan Last modified: June 1999
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