Massachusetts Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom & Social Responsibility Committee

Civil Liberties Champion Award

Eligibility:

The MLA Civil Liberties Champion may be a public official, business person, author, or other person or institution who has contributed to society through their efforts to protect individual liberty, safeguard constitutional freedoms, or promote social responsibility.  This award is a means for the Library Community to recognize a person who is outside of the Library profession. Therefore, no active librarian is eligible for this award.

Criteria:

The MLA civil Liberties Champion should be someone who

• has served to further the cause of intellectual freedom or social responsibility in our society

and/or

• has publicly highlighted the importance of Intellectual freedom or social responsibility

and/or

• has furthered the causes of equity of access to information, intellectual resources and economic opportunity for all people

Selection:

This Award may be given from time to time and is not an annual award.  The Intellectual Freedom & Social Responsibility Committee will nominate and vote on the award, forwarding its nominee to the MLA Executive Board for final approval.  Recommendations may come from any MLA member, and any such recommendation must be made in writing via a letter to the IFSRC, stating the reasons for recommending the nominee.  Approval of a nomination for forwarding to the MLA Executive Board is made by a majority vote of the Committee.  

Award:

The award will be a certificate, and may be given at the MLA Conference, Library Legislative Day, or any other appropriate venue.