BCLA is inviting input to the review of the BCLA Intellectual Freedom Statement via survey from November 6 to December 6, 2024. The Intellectual Freedom Committee has been working since the summer to develop a process to gather input from the BC library community. This survey is one part of that process.
Current BCLA members will have received a link to the member input survey via email; members of the BC library community who are not BCLA members are invited to participate via the non-member survey.
The questions on both surveys are exactly the same – we are using different links to see if there are any differences in responses between current BCLA members and other BC library community members. We recognize that this statement will affect the work of BCLA members and non-members, and we want our work to be informed by input from the whole community, while ensuring we are aligned with and accountable to our members. (If you are a current member who did not receive the survey, please check your junk folder and log in to your account to ensure you are checking the email account associated with your BCLA membership. If you still can’t find it, contact BCLA to determine the issue.)
The survey is anonymous, and no individually identifiable information is being collected. It takes an average of 20-30 minutes to complete, although some people may need longer. None of the questions are required. You have the option to answer some of the questions, save your answers and come back later to complete the survey.
We know that no process will gather the full scope of thoughts and feelings about intellectual freedom among library workers in the province; there are deep divisions in our sector when it comes to intellectual freedom, and no statement can reflect everyone’s beliefs. How intellectual freedom is operationalized in individual libraries continues to be the responsibility and domain of those libraries.
Information and future updates on the review and the work of the committee will be shared via email to members, on the Intellectual Freedom Committee subsite, and via the BCLA Forum.
With thanks,
Suzanne Rackover & Cristina Freire, Co-Chairs, BCLA Intellectual Freedom Committee