Reading between Librarians’ lines

It is a well known fact that librarians, as professionals go, are not among the world's most demonstrative people. I can say that with impunity because I am one. It's one thing for a man to slight his own profession; quite another when someone else presumes to do it. But given that librarians are a placid sort, just mention the phrase "intellectual freedom," or utter the word "censorship," and the usually calm demeanor of the librarian becomes as agitated as the water between Charybdis and Scylla! This article addresses three aspects of the issue of intellectual freedom and attempts to define the difference between the phrases "free speech" and "free expression." First to be explored will be the nature of intellectual freedom as defined by the American Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Manual; second, the underlying philosophy implicit in that expression; and third, an alternative to both the manual, and its philosophical presuppositions.

Frances Lander Spain Papers - Accession 4

The Frances Lander Spain Papers consists of correspondence, clippings, photographs, memorabilia, and copies of her publications relating to her involvement with professional library organizations such as the American Library Association; her library work in Thailand as a Fulbright and Rockefeller Foundation grantee (1951-1952 and 1964-1965); and her work as coordinator of children’s services at the N.Y. Public Library (1953-1961). Correspondents include librarian Louis Round Wilson. There is also a family history which includes the family names Chambers, Collier, Cook, Crossland, Dantzler, Gran, Hardeman, Lander, McDaniel, McPherson, Miller, Pearce, Pierce, Schenk, Snead, Spain, Sparks, Warlick and Zimmerman.