Defending Library Neutrality: FAIR Stands With the Association of Library Professionals
Newsletter
Dear Friends of FAIR,
This week, we are spotlighting an organization asking one of the most consequential questions of our moment: How can libraries remain trusted civic institutions in a polarized world? That organization is the Association of Library Professionals (ALP).
For generations, libraries have functioned as a bedrock of civic life: spaces where anyone, regardless of their background or belief, could access information freely, without being steered toward a particular conclusion or political or social agenda. Yet this principled commitment to open inquiry is increasingly under pressure. ALP was founded to guide librarianship back to its founding principle, centering the needs of individual patrons and communities through institutional neutrality, open inquiry, and respect for intellectual autonomy. At a time when “intellectual freedom” often means different things to different people, ALP offers a clear and consistent vision: libraries exist to serve the reader, not to shape what the reader thinks or believes.
FAIR is inspired by ALP’s focus on viewpoint diversity, the belief that a healthy civic culture depends on exposure to a genuine diversity of viewpoints. ALP’s commitment to excellence and professional integrity, equipping librarians with the tools and community support to uphold freedom of expression in their institutions, reflects the principled, nonpartisan advocacy FAIR admires.
If you share our admiration for ALP’s work, we invite you to join FAIR in Libraries, our professional network for library staff, trustees, and engaged citizens who believe that libraries should be places of discovery, not indoctrination. Members gain access to a supportive network of peers, shared resources for navigating workplace challenges, and a collective voice advocating for neutrality and excellence in our public and academic institutions.
As it works to inspire a new generation of librarians and to return to these timeless values, ALP is proving that neutrality is not a lack of conviction, but a profound commitment to the freedom of the individual. By focusing on how we think rather than what we think, ALP is helping to preserve libraries as sanctuaries for free thought.
Whether you are a seasoned library director or a dedicated patron, your voice matters in preserving these vital spaces. The library has always been one of democracy's best ideas. Help keep it that way. Join FAIR in Libraries & Join the Association of Library Professionals
With Gratitude,
The Fair For All Team
* Join Our Webinar Tonight * The Body-Mind Connection: Rethinking How Medicine Approaches Adolescent Development
Mood swings, difficulty focusing, disrupted sleep, irregular periods are all hallmarks of adolescence and not necessarily signs of disorder. Yet antidepressant prescriptions for teens have risen 66% in six years, ADHD diagnoses now affect more than 6 million children, and hormonal contraception is routinely prescribed to teenage girls for symptoms that may reflect normal development.
Join FAIR and Dr. Kendra Kautz, DC *TONIGHT* Wednesday, May 6th, 4pm PT / 7pm ET, for a candid conversation about what parents are often not told before a prescription is written and what questions they have every right to ask.
Drawing on real cases and peer-reviewed research, this webinar will explore the physiological context behind adolescent symptoms and ask what informed consent should really mean before a family agrees to a prescription that could change a developing brain.
This webinar will be livestreamed on FAIR’s X, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Zoom.
Need a primer? Here’s the latest article by Dr. Kendra Kautz:
FAIR in Conversation is Back!
FAIR in Conversation has relaunched with a new monthly format built for this moment. We’re leaning away from books and into the issues themselves: the debates, decisions, and developments that are defining what fairness, free speech, and equal dignity mean in America, and beyond, right now.
Each session will center on a pressing topic of the day, drawing on a curated mix of articles, book summaries, short essays, podcasts, films, and other multimedia resources to ground the conversation before opening the floor for discussion. Sessions will be virtual, open to all FAIR members, and designed to be as accessible as they are substantive. You don’t need to have read anything in advance. Just bring your curiosity, your willingness to listen, and your commitment to engage in good faith.
These are exactly the conversations America needs now, and we are committed to modeling them. Sessions will run monthly from April 29th to September 23rd. We hope you’ll join us!
FAIR Educators Alliance 2025-2026
Join the FAIR Educators Alliance for the 2025–2026 school year to equip PK–12 educators with the knowledge, strategies, and community support they need to foster schools that are more enriching and free from bias for students and educators.
Each monthly gathering will open with updates and presentations from FAIR staff, fellows, Chapter Leaders, and occasional guest speakers. Together, we’ll explore strategies to support educators, communities, and local chapters—and to advance positive change at the local, regional, and national levels.
Following the presentations, participants will have space for open-forum discussions to connect, seek advice, and coordinate on pressing issues in their schools. Breakout rooms will be divided into PK-6 and 7-12 grade levels with experienced teachers facilitating those conversations.
Meetings: First Thursday of each month at 7 PM ET via Zoom Duration: 1 hour
Note to readers: We have paused the FAIR News podcast. If you prefer listening, rather than reading these newsletters, an audio version is available directly on the Substack app. Thank you for tuning in!
A handful of years ago, my local library in our town of 7,000 had a display. It was, What Are Your Pronouns?, and it was in the children's section. That was when it became clear to me how far things had gone.
A library should be a simple, open door: you walk in, you pick up a book, and you decide what to think. Centering "communities," hands the keys to a committee. As soon as a group is allowed to curate for "the community," they gain the power to censor.
This is the death of individual inquiry. When a committee decides which viewpoints are "diverse" enough to include, they are no longer librarians—they are gatekeepers of a social experiment. By prioritizing the group over the person, they turn a sanctuary for free thought into a factory for indoctrination. True freedom of thought requires a library to serve the individual's right to know, not a committee's right to steer. people should be respecting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, but it seems more and more we're seeing a backtracking, weakening, reversal, and abrogation...