Library and Academic Institution Movements & the Law

In one of his latest executive orders, President Trump ordered big cuts to the Institute of Museum and Library Services, which is the only federal agency that provides funds to libraries.

And then they came for the libraries. On March 14, the Trump Administration promulgated an executive order that, as the American Library Association (ALA) describes it, “calls for the el…

An executive order issued by the Trump administration on Friday night, March 14, calls for the elimination of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the nation’s only federal agency for America’s libraries.

Feinberg Series Panel with Joe Berry and Diana Vallera moderated by Cedric de LeonIn recent decades campuses have relied more and more on contingent instruct...

A Feinberg Series Panel with Ellen Schrecker, Jesse Hagopian and Paul OrtizReactionary politicians, school boards, and well-funded private entities are wagin...

Feinberg Series Address by Dr. Timothy K. EatmanHow do the legacies of slavery and colonialism continue to constrict possibilities for Black and Indigenous c...

2024-25 Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series Keynote Address by Dr. Davarian L. Baldwin, Distinguished Professor of American Studies, Trinity College...

We must face whatever threats come our way by showing up together—library workers and public supporters in our communities—to advocate for our patrons, our profession, and our core values.

ALA's success depends on the library community's collective efforts to advocate for policies that positively impact patrons and the ability of libraries to serve them effectively. We hope you will use these resources in your advocacy work at home.

Columbia University had $400 million in federal grants canceled after the Trump administration said the school failed to protect Jewish students.

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There are currently more than 30 bills across the U.S. targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at public colleges.

Proponents point to historic highs in book ban attempts, largely targeting people of color, women and LGBTQ+ communities. Opponents argue it should be up to the parents.

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This document is the result of a year of work and collaboration by the Trans Metadata Collective (TMDC; https://transmetadatacollective.org/), a group of dozens of cataloguers, librarians, archivists, scholars, and information professionals with a concerted interest in improving the description and classification of trans and gender diverse people in GLAMS (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, Museums and Special Collections). The Collective’s primary goal was to develop a set of best practices for the description, cataloguing, and classification of information resources as well as the creation of metadata about trans and gender diverse people, including authors and other creators

What has—and hasn’t—changed in the legal landscape.

Policies in academic libraries, whether formal or informal, external or internal, carry high levels of importance for the functioning of the library. …

Since the start of the new Trump administration, hundreds of federal data sets and government websites have gone offline without warning, sometimes returning...

The White House has ordered thousands of government web pages to be taken down over the past month, leaving virtually no trace of some federal agencies’ policies regarding critical topics such as sexual orientation, January 6 cases and discrimination.

The Wayback Machine is helping preserve the record of government websites before they were changed by the Trump administration. CBS News Confirmed's Rhona Tarrant reports.

Georgia is considering a bill aimed at preventing children from accessing explicit library material. Opponents say it would chill free speech

The American Bar Association will temporarily suspend enforcement of its diversity and inclusion standard for law schools.

This is "The Lydia R. Otero Papers at Special Collections" by University of Arizona Libraries on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people…

To fairly reward talent in all its forms, companies need to remove barriers that prevent people’s potential and contributions from being recognized.

A series of bills targeting diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in state agencies, colleges and universities are circulating through the Legislature as Republican lawmakers look to align with President Donald Trump’s executive order ending DEI programs.

The AHA has sent a letter to President Trump regarding his dismissal of the Archivist of the United States, Dr. Colleen J. Shogan.

The EveryLibrary Institute is collecting and analyzing polling and surveys about book bans, anti-access legislation, and the perception of libraries/librarians to help advocates quickly find and interpret results.

The Trump administration is facing a new legal challenge to President Donald Trump’s executive orders (EOs) to eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and initiatives after a group of diversity officers, professors, and restaurant worker advocates filed a lawsuit in a federal court in Maryland on February 3, 2025, alleging the orders are vague and unconstitutional. Meanwhile, the U.S. Attorney General and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued memoranda on February 5, 2025, to implement the orders and guide federal agencies on their scope.

“Two is one, one is none.” This military adage, typically attributed to the US Navy Seals, advises that one should always have a backup plan, in the event that something inevitably fails or goes wr…