Enshrined in the mission statement of ALA, intellectual freedom is one of the core values of the information professions. The importance of ensuring information access to all, and the historical, social, and legal foundations of this commitment, are powerfully explored in this essential primer. Designed to function as both an introductory text for LIS students as well as a complementary resource for current professionals, this book provides a cohesive, holistic perspective on intellectual freedom. Extending beyond censorship to encompass such timely and urgent topics as hate speech and social justice, from this book readers will gain an understanding of

• the historical and legal roots of intellectual freedom, with an in-depth examination of John Stuart Mill’s “On Liberty” and Article 19 of the U.N Declaration of Human Rights, and its central concepts and principles;  
• the intersection of intellectual freedom, freedom of expression, and social justice;
• professional values, codes of ethics, ALA’s Library Bill of Rights, and Freedom to Read/View Statements;
• pro- and anti- censorship arguments and their use in impeding and facilitating access to information;
• book banning and internet filtering;
• privacy and its relationship to information services;
• U.S. case law and precedents;
• the basics of U.S. copyright law, including fair use, and how it differs from international copyright law; and
• emerging global issues and their impact on future intellectual freedom.

Collecting several key documents and policy statements, this supplement to the tenth edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual traces a history of ALA's commitment to fighting censorship. Beginning with an introductory essay that chronicles ALA policy making on intellectual freedom, this important resource includes sections discussing such foundational issues as

• library advocacy on social and political issues, from post-World War I disarmament, to Vietnam-era protests, to the call to revisit the field’s rhetoric concerning neutrality;
• the evolution of the Library Bill of Rights, such as the 1978 revision that eliminated its use of sex-linked pronouns and ALA Council actions rescinding the 2018 interpretation on meeting rooms;
• protecting the freedom to read;
• diverse collections and equity, diversity, and inclusion, new to this edition;
• ALA’s complicated history on race, including a 1936 statement opposing discrimination, inaction amidst litigation to desegregate libraries in the 1950s and 1960s, and protests over Florida’s Stand Your Ground Law;
• ALA's Code of Ethics;
• how to respond to challenges and concerns about library resources;
• internet filtering, minors and online activity, and education and information literacy;
• programs and displays;
• policy on governmental intimidation; 
• copyright; and
• privacy and confidentiality, including the retention of library usage records.