The September 18th Public Libraries and the Homeless: Legal Issues webinar is now available from the free InfoPeople archive (see Access below).
Note: Some content about court rulings may become outdated over the next year, as newer cases are settled.Presenter: Mary Minow
Speaker's slides
Handouts: doc [124kb] - pdf [44kb]
Because courts give greater latitude to library rules that are behavior focused, and a tighter scrutiny to rules based on status or speech, it’s important to know the how to frame your policies, especially when dealing with specific populations such as the homeless.
The one-hour webinar looks at the movement for Homeless Persons’ Bill of Rights and Fairness, and the current legal rights and professional ethics as they apply to public libraries.
Note: Have the JPL Library Code of Conduct handy during the webinar, so that you can compare our policies with Mary Minow's recommendations.
It will also discuss specific issues such as oversize parcels, behavior issues, and qualifications for library cards for customers who don’t have a permanent address.
At the end of this one-hour webinar, participants will:
- Know about the rights that homeless patrons have and rights they are striving for
- Review library ethical statements on service to the poor and the freedom to read
- Understand some legal nuances between rules that target behavior versus rules that are focused on user status
Access
- Click the View Archive button (or, if you do not see that button, the click here link)
- Complete the registration form (free) and click the Register button
- The Adobe Connect webinar should begin.