ALA Councilor Report - ALA Midwinter 2003
ALA Midwinter Conference 2003, Philadelphia
Wyoming Chapter Councilor's Report
Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or comments.
Jennifer Mayer, Wyoming Chapter Councilor
307-766-5578
mayerj@uwyo.edu
Key Issues at 2003 Midwinter
ALA-APA:
The new Allied Professional Association of ALA was made official by council vote. The ALA-APA is a nonprofit professional organization established to promote the mutual professional interests of librarians and other library workers. The association will advocate for pay equity for all library professionals, provide voluntary certifications beyond the professional library degree, and enhance recruitment efforts to the profession. The website is http://www.ala-apa.org Contributions are needed to ensure that this new organization can meet their goals. You may check the box on your ALA membership renewal form or send your contribution to: ALA/APA 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611.
USA Patriot Act: The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act remains at the forefront of ALA's current concerns. The act provides for the U.S. government to access library patron records, among other things. The act itself is 131 pages, but for documents regarding how this relates to library concerns see
http://www.ala.org/cgi-bin/reghtml.cgi
For state chapter resolutions on this issue see: http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/usapatriotresolution.html
UCITA: The Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act is still a hotly contested act. For a tutorial on UCITA see http://www.ala.org/washoff/ucita/ucita101.html
Currently Wyoming has no legislation pending on this act but it is worthwhile to stay current with UCITA. UCITA has passed in Maryland and Virginia. UCITA is a "proposed state contract law designed to standardize the law and provide the default rules for licensing software and all other forms of digital information. UCITA is applicable to "information in electronic form" including computer software, on-line databases, electronic journals, e-books, CD-ROMs, and videos."
CIPA: The Supreme Court arguments regarding the Children's Internet Protection Act will begin March 5, 2003. To stay current on the Supreme Court outcome as well as other CIPA news, see http://www.ala.org/cipa/
Campaign for America's Libraries:
The ALA Public Relations Office is compiling a list of state chapter programs, statewide initiatives, conferences and advocacy training that utilizes the @your library brand. If anyone in the Wyoming chapter is involved with this campaign (i.e. using the logo or theme) please contact Megan Humphrey mhumphrey@ala.org or 1-800-545-2433 ext. 4020 as soon as possible.
Select Documents
Advocating for Better Salaries and Pay Equity Toolkit (Campaign for America's Librarians):
See http://www.ala.org/pio/advocacy/ for this document and other advocacy materials.
ALA/APA Frequently Asked Questions:
See http://www.ala-apa.org/currentdocuments.html for this FAQ and other ALA APA documents.
Campaign to Save America's Libraries Toolkits:
http://www.ala.org/pio/csal_toolkit.html
Complete List of ALA Council and Board Actions at Midwinter 2003
http://www.ala.org/pio/midwinter_actions.html
Questions and Answers on Privacy and Confidentiality:
See http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/privacyqanda.html
Statewide Participation @your library: Report on Statewide Campaign Activities January-December 2002
Contact Jennifer Mayer if you would like a copy of this document.
Noteworthy Midwinter Events and Information
Attendance:
There were 10,657 attendees at Midwinter 2003.
Orientation:
The orientation for chapter leaders was informative. There were more president-elects from state chapters than chapter councilors but it was very helpful. We had guest speakers and discussions on a variety of topics. These topics included: Financial Management of Your Association, Diversity in Your Association, How to Keep Members, Conference Planning, Developing Leadership in Your Association, Association Staffing and Advocacy and Legislators. I have a few handouts from these sessions, which I will share with the WLA board and anyone else who is interested.
Advocacy Reception:
I attended a reception at ALA President Mitch Freeman's suite. There I met several other chapter councilors and we discussed what was happening at the state level. The Illinois Library Association created their own booklet "Privacy & Confidentiality in Libraries." They freely borrowed from ALA materials to create this booklet, which is encouraged.
Keynote Speaker:
Amy Goodman of Democracy Now was an excellent keynote speaker. She is an independent journalist who provides an alternative news source to the large media conglomerates. She talked about patron privacy issues and the loss of public community spaces like libraries. Goodman's website is http://www.democracynow.org
Council Caucus:
This was an informal get-together in which councilors brainstormed about various issues. The USA Patriot Act was the big discussion topic. Some councilors were concerned with the alleged presence of an FBI agent at the conference. There was debate about resolutions relating to the Middle East. Some councilors feel that social and global issues are important for ALA to pursue, others feel ALA should concentrate more on American library issues such as librarian salaries.
Chapter Relations Committee Meeting:
This committee covered some practical ground. The most helpful feature of this meeting was the discussion about promoting your library. The state of New Jersey gave several examples. They received corporate funding for their summer reading program and also had a very successful banner program (NJ@your library). The Governor of New Jersey hung a banner in his office and then everyone wanted a banner.
Some Resolutions of Interest:
The following documents were adopted:
CD #48: Supporting the continuation of the University of Arizona School of Information Resources and Library Services
CD #49: Urging the Governor of Florida to reinstate funding for the State Library of Florida
CD #51: Urging the President of the United States toward a peaceful solution in Iraq.
CD#20.1: The Resolution on the USA Patriot Act and Related Measures that Infringe on the Rights of Library Users.
This resolution states in part that the ALA considers sections of the USA Patriot Act a present danger to the constitutional rights and privacy rights of library users and urges Congress amend or change sections of these laws.
For these and other actions of ALA Council, Midwinter 2003 meeting, see http://www.ala.org/pio/midwinter_actions.html