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The Intellectual Freedom Round Table (IFRT) provides a forum for the discussion of activities, programs, and problems in intellectual freedom of libraries and librarians.

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  • 1.  Improper ideologies

    Posted Mar 31, 2025 09:55 AM

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    Naval Academy Purges Its Library Of 'DEI' Books

    At the order of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Naval Academy has identified some 900 books that "run afoul" of President Trump's anti-DEI order, including "The Autobiography of Martin Luther King Jr.," "Einstein on Race and Racism," and a biography on Jackie Robinson, the NYT reports.



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    Michael Gorman
    Chicago, Illinois
    michaelg@mail.fresnostate.edu
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  • 2.  RE: Improper ideologies

    Posted Apr 01, 2025 02:46 PM

    900 books?  What's left? And "Einstein on Race and Racism"  that's a real stretch as a blockbuster "DEI" title.  Who  is the professional librarian determining these books for blacklisting?  Are we as librarians going to let such attacks run under the radar?  McCarthyism can no longer be tolerated! Who will be brave enough to standup for our profession and cry foul ?  I'm in, anyone else care to join me?   

            Claire Rafferty Gallam

                (Milwaukee, WI)



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    Claire Gallam
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Improper ideologies

    Posted Apr 01, 2025 03:08 PM
    All good questions.  As of yesterday, the books named are still in the Nimitz Library catalogue (plus many other materials on MLK and Jackie R.).  I wonder if the librarians have just said "yes, yes, sir" and moved them to temporary shelves.  I doubt the Fox "News" weekend host posing as DefSec would know to look in a library's catalogue.


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    Michael Gorman
    Chicago, Illinois
    Editor, Caxtonian
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Improper ideologies

    Posted Apr 01, 2025 08:40 PM
    Thank you Claire Gallam and Michael Gorman.  Please come to the IFRT Reads weekly sessions this month.  We are responding to various aspects of Project 2025.   Today's topic was combating anti-immigrant hatred.  The next session will be on Tuesday April 8 at 3 p.m. E.T.  All the sessions have been posted on ALA Connect. 

    Best,

    Frieda Afary
    Director-at-Large
    Intellectual Freedom Round Table



    Original Message