Brief Description: Case Files (1968-2010), maintained by the Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF), consisting of legal briefs, attorney's correspondence, judicial decisions, government reports, and clippings, related to First Amendment rights legal cases and incidents of censorship; state and federal court cases in which the FTRF had legal standing as a plaintiff, defendent, or amicus curiae, including challenges to the federal 1996 Communications Decency Act (CDA), 1998 Child Online Protection Act (COPA), and the 2001 Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA) in which the ALA also participated in the litigation; case files from rulings of the U.S. Supreme Court, federal appeals, and state courts; and back case files describing episodes of censorship or political interference with libraries or librarians, from the state and local level.

Record Series Number: 6/2/7

Created by: Freedom to Read Foundation (U.S.)

Volume: 34.0 Cubic Feet

Acquired: 07/26/2010.

2/2/12

7/1/15

Biographical Note for Freedom to Read Foundation (U.S.) :

The Freedom to Read Foundation (FTRF) is a non-profit legal and educational organization that is affiliated with the American Library Association.  It is a separate organization from ALA with its own membership.  Founded in 1969, FTRF was created in response to ALA members' interest in having adequate means to support and defend librarians whose positions are jepardized because of their resistance to abridgments of the First Amendment.

Its charter lists four purposes:

Promoting and protecting the freedom of speech and of the press; protecting the public's right of access to information and materials stored in the nation's libraries; safeguarding libraries' right to disseminate all materials contained in their collections; and supporting libraries and librarians in their defense of First Amendment rights by supplying them with legal counsel or the means to secure it.

And the Foundation's work has been divided into three primary activities:

The allocation and disbursement of grants to individuals and groups for the purpose of aiding them in litigation or otherwise furthering FTRF's goals; direct participation in litigation dealing with freedom of speech and of the press; and education about the importance of libraries and the First Amendment to our democratic institutions. (1)

Access Restrictions: Please contact an archivist to request access. Permission by the director of the Freedom to Read Foundation is required for access.

Subject Index

Languages of Materials