Intellectual Freedom: Intellectual Freedom and Libraries

The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services.

Although the Articles of the Library Bill of Rights are unambiguous statements of basic principles that should govern the service of all libraries, questions do arise concerning application of these principles to specific library practices.

ALA's Code of Ethics is the responsibility of the Committee on Professional Ethics (COPE). The Code of Ethics is the document that translates the values of intellectual freedom that define the profession of librarianship into broad principles that may be used by individual members of that profession as well as by others employed in a library as a framework for dealing with situations involving ethical conflicts.

A document that defined the responsibilities of publishers and librarians to protect Americans’ freedom to read. Since its inception, the statement has been altered during times of violence and prosecution to defend the reading choices of readers – it remains a rallying proclamation for all literary community members.