Intellectual Freedom and Social Responsibility: An Ethos of American Librarianship, 1967-1973

This research begins with a brief history of the 1960s and makes the connection between the alternative press movement and the rise of library activism. The study then traces the development of American librarianship, especially the American Library Association, through the 1960s; outlines the evolution of the Library Bill of Rights to its 1967 version with respect to its ideological framework; identifies the normal professional activity that librarians developed for the establishment press (or that they did not develop for the alternative press); and, looks into the question of how pre-1960s librarianship dealt with controversies. Next, the study presents the story of the social responsibility movement within librarianship between 1967 and 1972. Finally, the study outlines the ideological debate concerning the American Library Association's professional jurisdiction and intellectual freedom that peaked in 1973. Ultimately, this research addresses the ethos of American librarianship, the responsibility of librarians to society, and their struggle to reconcile the inertia of the status quo in the library establishment with social dissent and demands for change in the 1960s.