[Libs-Or] IFC Champion Award winner: April Witteveen!

[Emily O'Neal]

As the Chair of the IFC, it is with great honor that I get to present the award for this year’s intellectual freedom champion.  This year has been has been unmatched in the challenges encountered and the tactics taken in those challenges have often left our library staff anxious, stressed and often fearful.  To stand up for intellectual freedom in these times takes extraordinary bravery and commitment to the values we all hold so dear.  The free exchange of ideas, the free and open access to information, and the ability to see one’s self in the materials provided and the stories we share. This person stood tall in her conviction to uphold these values, showed incredible strength, even in times of extreme hostility.  She aided and led her team and her library through an extremely contentious and heated debate over equitable access to library materials for minors, specifically addressing the importance of representation for our LGBTQ stories for our communities.  It is with great honor that the IFC has chosen to award the Intellectual Freedom Champion award to former Crook County Library Director, current OSU-Cascades Director, April Witteveen.

Emily O'Neal - IFC Chair and IFC Members
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