1. MLS Candidate, Indiana University – Bloomington
Intellectual Freedom is Not Social Justice: ALA Accreditation, Symbolic Capital, and LIS Curricula
Kyle Shockey
MLS Candidate, Indiana University – Bloomington
@kshockey04

2. - Dr. Emily J.M. Knox (personal correspondence with author)

3. ALA’s Intellectual Freedom
Based in the 1st and 4th Amendments of the Bill of Rights
Varies by institution, but shares common framework
Centered around anti-censorship movements
Candace D. Morgan (2010): “Intellectual freedom accords to all library users the right to seek and receive information without having the subject of one’s interest examined or scrutinized by others.”
That sounds great, right?
Morgan, C. D. (2010). Intellectual freedom: An enduring and all-embracing concept. In American Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom, Intellectual freedom manual (8th ed.). Chicago: American Library Association.

4. Krug and Morgan (2010): “Can a library committed to intellectual freedom and to providing materials that represent all points of view also support one point of view?”
Krug, J. F. and Morgan, C. D. (2010). ALA and intellectual freedom: A historical overview. In American Library Association Office of Intellectual Freedom, Intellectual freedom manual (8th ed.). Chicago: American Library Association.

5. Social Justice
Based on the first of Nieto and Bode’s (2008) outcomes for social justice education, we should: Challenge, confront, and disrupt ‘misconceptions, untruths, and stereotypes that lead to structural inequality and discrimination based on race, social class, gender, and other social and human differences’
Gregory, L. and Higgins, S. (2013). Introduction. In Gregory L. and Higgins S. (eds) Information literacy and social justice: Radical professional praxis, Sacramento, CA: Library Juice Press.
Nieto, S. and Bode, P. (2008). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education (5th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson.

6. Where is Social Justice in the ALA?
Social Responsibilities Round Table – the advocacy camp
Kagan, A. (2015). Progressive library organizations: A worldwide history. Jefferson, NC: McFarland.
Samek, T. (2001). Intellectual freedom and social responsibility in American librarianship, Jefferson City, NC: McFarland.
1982: Ethnic & Multicultural Information Exchange Roundtable (EMIERT)
GLBT Roundtable
ALA Spectrum Doctoral Cohort - SJ Collaboratorium

7. But not in the core curriculum of library school.

8. Institutionalization
Symbolic Capital
Codification
&
Institutionalization
Bordieu, P. (1977). Outline of a theory of practice. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Knox, E.J.M. (2014). Supporting intellectual freedom: Symbolic capital and practical philosophy in librarianship. Library Quarterly, 84(1), 8-21.

9. Codification 1939: ALA Code of Ethics 1939: Library Bill of Rights
1946: Statement of Principles of Intellectual Freedom and Tenure for Librarians
1953: Freedom to Read Statement
1999: ACRL – Intellectual Freedom Principles for Academic Librarians

10. Institutionalization
1940: Intellectual Freedom Committee [IFC]
1967: Office for Intellectual Freedom [OIF]
1973: Intellectual Freedom Roundtable [IFRT]
1975: Committee on Professional Ethics

11. Accreditation & Symbolic Capital
Codification + Institutionalization  Library School
ALA Office of Accreditation (OA)
1920/56: ALA Committee on Accreditation (COA)
2012: Accreditation Process, Polices, & Procedures (AP3), 3rd ed
2015: Revised Standards for Accreditation of Master’s Programs in Library and Information Science (“Standards”)

12. Student outcomes [ergo, the curriculum via II.1] address:
I.2.1 The essential character of the field of library and information studies;
I.2.2 The philosophy, principles, and ethics of the field;
Committee on Accreditation of the American Library Association. (2015). Revised standards for accreditation of master’s programs in library and information studies [PDF document]. Retrieved from approved_Revised_Standards_23Jan2015_final.pdf.

13. “Should the library, as a social institution, serve as an advocate for social justice?” (Samek 2001)
Samek, T. (2001). Intellectual freedom and social responsibility in American librarianship, Jefferson City, NC: McFarland.

14. ktshocke@indiana.edu @kshockey04
Questions?
@kshockey04