Correctional librarians work in a unique environment where, similar to school and some special libraries, “appropriate content” is mandated by a non-library parent agency. Most guiding professional documents are outdated, insufficient, or not applicable.
To fill that gap, Diane Walden, member of the Institutional Library Development team at Colorado State Library, and Ray James, Research Specialist (Texas) have crafted “Prisoners’ Right to Read: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights.”
“Prisoners’ Right to Read” will provide correctional librarians with an intellectual freedom values statement tailored to their unique work environment and guidelines for aligning program outcomes and goals with those values.
The finished document is intended to:
- apply to general and law library collections;
- be usable in federal, state, county and city correctional agencies nationwide;
- advise public library staff doing outreach and correctional librarians;
- support inclusive collection development decisions;
- inform policy documents;
- defend library materials in challenges that go beyond law or compelling penological interests.
Your comments on this document are needed. Please use the goals above to evaluate and comment upon the draft. ALA Intellectual Freedom Committee is accepting comments through June 11, 2010. (ALA membership not required, but you will need to register on the site to comment.)
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