BCLA is pleased to host the Canadian Library Association presentation of the 2015 CLA Advancement of Intellectual Freedom Award to Brian Campbell, which will take place immediately before the Plenary.
“War is the health of the state,” wrote the American essayist Randolph Bourne during World War I. “Public opinion, as expressed in the newspapers, and the pulpits and the schools, becomes one solid block. Loyalty, or rather war orthodoxy, becomes the sole test for all professions, techniques, occupations.” Librarians have a special responsibility to resist such orthodoxy. How do we protect free speech and dissent today? What are the implications of Bill C 51 and the “war on terror”? How do we avoid the trap of using the call for free speech to deprive others of their rights and freedoms? What do we mean when we talk about free speech in a library context? Please join our distinguished panel of speakers to explore questions, and share opinions, that are relevant to us all.
The Keith Sacré Library Champion Award will be presented immediately following the plenary discussion.
