American Libraries

American Libraries is the official magazine of the American Library Association (ALA) and represents the voice of the library profession. It is published six times a year, along with occasional digital editions, by the ALA. The magazine has the ISSN 0002-9769 and is printed in the USA. Subscribing to American Libraries is included in ALA membership dues. It reaches approximately 65,000 individuals and organizations around the globe, and ALA members receive the magazine as a benefit of their membership.

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Science and Education/Libraries and Museums

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Five Months into the Trump Presidency

1 week ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Paula Mauro

Since our last report, libraries have continued to experience significant upheaval from President Trump’s actions. In May, the Trump administration fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter. We also saw legal cases challenging the administration’s defunding of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) continue to make their way through the courts in May and June.
Newsmaker: Brewster Kahle

3 weeks ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Paula Mauro

Since founding the Internet Archive in 1996, Brewster Kahle has helped preserve nearly three decades of digital history—along with millions of books, audio recordings, videos, images, and software programs. But in 2023, four major publishers successfully sued the Archive, forcing it to remove their copyrighted books from its digital lending library.
Going to Press | American Libraries Magazine

4 weeks ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Paula Mauro

Libraries typically provide books—not publish them. But eight years ago, Ann Arbor (Mich.) District Library (AADL) had some voices it wanted the world to hear. “We’ve always had a hardcore group of local writers,” says AADL Librarian Erin Helmrich. The library first launched a program to provide support, learning, and advice for local emerging writers.
Newsmaker: Adriana Harmeyer

1 month ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Paula Mauro

With total earnings of $426,600, Adriana Harmeyer, archives and special collections assistant professor and archivist for university history at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, is the winningest library professional ever to have appeared on the legendary game show Jeopardy! This Wednesday, May 14, she seeks to further cement that title, as she aims for the quarterfinals of the 2025 Jeopardy! Masters Tournament.
Brewing Connections

2 months ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Megan Bennett

While creating one of their in-house brews, employees at Johnson City (Tenn.) Brewing Company brought in some unexpected assistants to pour barley into the batch: library staffers. The pre-Prohibition-style lager they crafted together was called 1895, a nod to the founding year of Johnson City Public Library (JCPL), located just a few blocks from the brewery’s downtown taproom.
Crip Time in the Library

2 months ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Paula Mauro

At this point in the year, almost everyone on campus seems to be thinking about the end of the term. But this span of time doesn’t necessarily look or feel the same to everyone. Some of us who have disabilities move through time a little differently, experiencing it as particularly nebulous and abstract. I am open with students about my disabilities, especially as an academic with ADHD.
'Inspiring Examples of What is Possible': Meet the 2025 I Love My Librarian Award Honorees

2 months ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Paula Mauro

The 2025 recipients of the I Love My Librarian Award (ILMLA) are 10 standout librarians. They include a bookmobile librarian serving a community in crisis, a school librarian bridging gaps for low-income students, a youth detention facility librarian creating a more inviting and inclusive space, and other notable community figures. On January 24, the American Library Association (ALA) presented the awards as part of the LibLearnX conference in Phoenix (watch the video here).
By the Numbers: Workers’ Rights

2 months ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Megan Bennett

International Workers’ Day is May 1. 8Date in April that National Library Workers Day was celebrated this year. Since 2004, it has been commemorated on the Tuesday of National Library Week. 25,000Number of library workers represented by the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). AFSCME represents more library workers than any other union in the US.
Amplifying Voices

2 months ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Megan Bennett

At George A. Jackson Elementary School in Jericho, New York, educators wanted to help students discover the power of their voices. During the 2023–2024 school year, as part of a unit about natural hazards and disasters, 4th-graders used library and classroom time to create podcasts about their research. After National Public Radio (NPR) recognized one of the projects as a winner in its 2024 Student Podcast Challenge, the initiative has continued to grow. George A.
Into the Fray | American Libraries Magazine

2 months ago | americanlibrariesmagazine.org | Megan Bennett

In the summer of 2023, a controversial book—Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe—was removed from the shelves of the small Connecticut library where I worked as a part-time paraprofessional. The removal was done in transgression of the library board’s book reconsideration policy. The book’s catalog record also vanished.