Wednesday, February 2, 2011

ALA Midwinter 2011

This was my first ALA as a member of ALA Council (which is where I represent Oregon as OLA's rep to ALA). There are three main Council meetings where councilors bring forward resolutions and hear about the business of running ALA. I've attached more detailed notes from these meetings, but overall it was really refreshing to see how different sides could really work together toward an improved compromise (somewhat different than what we sometimes observe in national politics).

The main (and most scintillating) resolutions that were addressed looked at Domestic Partner Benefits in library job ads, publishing a Do Not Patronize list of hotels used at ALA conferences, and intellectual freedom and how the federal government handles these issues (initiated by what had been happening with WikiLeaks in December).

Most of my time was spent in the Convention Center, but I did get outside to enjoy the lovely San Diego weather (mostly on walks to my hotel). If you would like any other details of my time in San Diego, or have questions about what ALA Council is and how the OLA rep fits in, feel free to leave a comment or send me an email.

Hannah