Library and Academic Institution Movements & the Law

Universities have found themselves under pressure from President Trump – from blocked funds for research, to attacks on their admission policies and diversit...

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has published an addendum (pages 30–31) to the Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries (2012), providing updated guidance...

Nonprofit Common Crawl issued November 4 statement defending data collection methods, citing technical constraints preventing content deletion.

Editor’s Note: Please join us in welcoming Eleanor Ball, Information Literacy & Liaison Librarian and Assistant Professor of Instruction at the University of Northern Iowa, as a new First Year Academic Librarian Experience blogger for the 2025-26 year here at ACRLog. I’m about as anti-AI as

EveryLibrary Institute is a 501c3 organization that supports library funding in the United States.

"Conversations about higher education teem with accusations that American colleges and universities are betraying free speech, indoctrinating students with left-wing dogma, and censoring civil discussions. But these complaints are badly misguided. In Terms of Respect, constitutional scholar and Princeton University president Christopher L. Eisgruber argues that colleges and universities are largely getting free speech right. Today's students engage in vigorous discussions on sensitive topics and embrace both the opportunity to learn and the right to protest. Like past generations, they value free speech, but, like all of us, they sometimes misunderstand what it requires. Ultimately, the polarization and turmoil visible on many campuses reflect an American civic crisis that affects universities along with the rest of society. But colleges, Eisgruber argues, can help to promote civil discussion in this raucous, angry world-and they can show us how to embrace free speech without sacrificing ideals of equality, diversity, and respect. Urgent and original, Terms of Respect is an ardent defense of our universities, and a hopeful vision for navigating the challenges that free speech provokes for us all"-- Provided by publisher.

The Oct. 20 ruling only applies to the five schools attended by students in the lawsuit and is only in place as litigation continues.

A pioneering guide that addresses the critical need to foster kindness and wellbeing within library workplaces and promoting a more supportive and understanding working environment. Through research, case studies, and actionable advice, the author offers solutions to everyday workplace challenges, emphasising empathy, support, and collaboration. Coverage includes: practicalities of kindness in the workplace, crafting a culture of kindness, kind use of data for wellbeing. This book explores the practical implementation of policies that support a kind and healthy work environment. Readers will learn how to create strategies that foster collaboration, open communication, and mutual respect among staff and patrons. Includes bibliographical references (pages [345]-356) and index.

This week marks the annual Banned Books Week across the country, which celebrates free speech and rallies against censorship. The Hawaiʻi Library Association and American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii partnered to launch this year's celebration, which is themed “Censorship is so 1984. Read for your rights".

As libraries across the United States observe Banned Books Week, the Hawaii State Public Library System has rebranded it as “Freedom to Read.”

In this blog, Robert French explores the limits of lawful expression, the role of universities in resisting intolerance, and why the scientific community must help uphold public debate.

The STAR Village pilot program is slated to open in late fall as Tucson sees a rise in homelessness.

EveryLibrary's Executive Director, John Chrastka, discusses why he believes in libraries.

This report offers a window into the complex and extensive climate of censorship between July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025.

White House asks the U of A and eight other universities to pledge support for President Trump's political priorities in return for priority access to federal funds.

Pioneering actor, author, and activist George Takei has been named honorary chair of Banned Books Week, which will take place October 5 – 11, 2025. Takei will be joined in leading the annual event by youth honorary chair Iris Mogul.

Press Release: Growing Libraries and ReThinking Libraries announce a partnership to help libraries better serve their communities. Growing Libraries and ReThinking Libraries have announced a partnership that will supercharge strategic planning for libraries, enabling them to reach more community members and connect them with library services.

When law firms avoid or sideline DEI programs, they implicitly say that they are okay with missing out on the diversity of experience and thought that fuels better decisions, stronger...

Punishing speech after Kirk’s assassination doesn’t protect free expression — it erodes it.

​Nearly three-quarters of college presidents say they are “extremely concerned” about the current administration’s impact on higher education, according to ACE’s Pulse Point survey, released today.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit denied a request by defendants in Rhode Island v. Trump to stay a May 13 preliminary injunction that formally ordered a halt to the dismantling the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Since coming into office, the Trump administration has increasingly targeted undocumented students and the colleges and universities seeking to enroll and support them. This includes efforts to roll back in-state tuition access and scholarships for undocumented students, including filing lawsuits against states with such laws, restricting eligibility to adult education and career and technical education (CTE) classes, and opening federal civil rights investigations into institutions that offer scholarships to DACA recipients and undocumented students. In response to these developments, this...

The sixth annual College Free Speech Rankings show a continued decline in support for free speech among all students, but particularly conservatives.

The Trump administration says it will not defend a decades-old grant program for heavily Hispanic universities that is being challenged in court, declaring that the government believes the funding is unconstitutional.

SAN ANTONIO –  The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) has released the following statement in response to the July 25, 2025, letter from the Solicitor General of the U.S. Department of Justice, stating the Department’s decision not to defend the constitutionality of Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) in the ongoing litigation involving the State of […]

Updated August 15, 2025—On August 12, 2025, the White House notified the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution that the administration will undertake a review of exhibitions, materials, and practices at eight Smithsonian museums “to ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and…

Scholars are pushing back against the Trump administration’s plan to conduct a "comprehensive internal review" of the Smithsonian, viewing it as political interference.

The student experience is changing at universities after multiple diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, offices and centers have been shut down.  Schools such as the University of Mi…