150 YEARS STRONG

Librarians on the March

Crowd at the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women. Photo: George M. Eberhart/American Libraries
The crowd at the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women. Photo: George M. Eberhart/American Libraries

A mass of enthusiastic demonstrators took part in the Atlanta March for Social Justice and Women held on Saturday, January 21, [2017], during the ALA Midwinter Meeting and Exhibits. A contingent of at least 200 librarians participated, many dressed in pink pussyhats and Nasty Women t-shirts, brandishing signs like “Make America read again” and “Keep your hands off my area studies.” The demonstration was one of hundreds held in all 50 states and dozens of countries to show opposition to the policies of the Trump administration on immigration, women’s rights, health care, climate change, choice, diversity, and equality.

Midwinter Meeting attendees gathered in a hall of the Georgia World Congress Center to create posters, distribute “Radical Militant Librarian” pins, and generate some LIS energy for the march. A sign on the wall suggested some slogans the librarian contingent could use: “Silence is not the answer,” “Libraries are the key to freedom,” and “Too many issues­—not enough poster.”

Bedeviled by heavy rains at the beginning of the march, only about 18,000 assembled at the Atlanta Center for Civil and Human Rights (CCHR), but by the time the march ended at the gold-domed Georgia State Capitol nearly a mile away, the crowd had swelled to nearly 63,000, according to police estimates. There was a wide age range as well, from infants held by their mothers to senior citizens who may have been involved in Vietnam War protests. Black men and women, Hispanics, Muslims, and whites were all well-represented.

To some observers, it seemed as if the sun broke through the clouds when Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) took the makeshift stage at the CCHR around 2 p.m. A much-venerated leader from the civil rights movement of the 1960s, Lewis said, “I know something about marching, and I’m ready to march again.” He said that when you see something is wrong, you have a mandate to oppose it. “We cannot afford to be silent,” he said. “We should be standing up, getting in the way, and getting into good trouble, necessary trouble.” He added, “Don’t let anybody turn you around,” reminding the marchers that he has been arrested 45 times in his life, five of those after he was elected to Congress.

Despite the intimations of trouble, the march was well organized and the marchers were on their best behavior. The feeling of unity and respect was palpable. The Atlanta police, who were blocking off the streets along the march path, were cheered periodically by the passing crowds.

Lewis also gave a pep talk at the end of the march at the Capitol, which you can hear on the video, shot by American Libraries then-Associate Editor Phil Morehart. Another video shows marchers on their way to the Capitol.

Wendy Prellwitz, left, formerly of ALA’s Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services, helped Midwinter attendees make posters for the march. Photo: George M. Eberhart/American Libraries

150 YEARS STRONG

THE OFFICIAL ANNIVERSARY BLOG

A Long Legacy

Sanhita SinhaRoy June 11, 2026

While ALA’s founding is technically in October, the staff at American Libraries put on their party hats early to celebrate ALA’s 150th year with a plethora of Association and library history-related stories in the magazine’s May 2026 issue.

ALA posters

Posters of Progress: Mapping ALA’s History Through Library Poster Art

American Libraries June 9, 2026

From wartime appeals to celebrity-studded reading campaigns, library posters have long captured the evolving role of libraries in American life. This feature traces ALA’s history through some of its most iconic visuals. Together, these images chart a story of the profession’s unflinching ideals of access, literacy, and intellectual freedom, showcasing how libraries continue to reimagine their place in public life.

An index card tracking an ALA conference exhibition hall exhibitor from 1924-1947.

The Heartbeat of the Hall: 150 Years of Exhibitors Who Shaped Our Conference

ALA Conference Services June 3, 2026

Every year as the doors of ALA’s Annual Conference and Exhibition swing open, the exhibition hall comes alive. It is a ritual that has been repeated, refined, and reimagined throughout ALA’s 150-year history. And at the center of it all, providing the innovations, solutions, and partnerships that have propelled our profession forward, are the exhibitors. To mark this milestone, we look back at the rich history of exhibitors at the conference—where it began, how it grew, and why, 150 years on, the exhibition floor remains one of the most vital spaces in our professional world.

Librarian at the Reference Desk in Camp Johnston Library, from the ALA Archives.

Charles R. Green at Camp Johnston: ‘We Can Find Such a Man’

Cara Bertram May 28, 2026

During the summer of 1918, Charles Green, a librarian from the Massachusetts Agriculture College, served as the Acting Librarian for Camp Johnston in Jacksonville, Florida. While his tenure was brief, the Charles R. Green Papers in the American Library Association (ALA) Archives reveal Green’s rapid appointment and promotion. It also shows how quickly circumstances could change within the ALA’s Library War Service and the adaptability of its volunteers.

Detail of letter from Lynn Blaylock to the Intellectual Freedom Committee.

‘Nothing Could Have Astonished Me More’: The Challenge of Consumer Reports

Cara Bertram May 21, 2026

Due to communist hysteria before and after World War II, many organizations and publications were under suspicion of being affiliated with or promoting the Communist party, including Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, the product testing and consumer advocacy magazine. As a result, Ohio schools banned the use of Consumer Reports in the classroom. While the ban was short-lived, the questions about it were not and the ALA Intellectual Freedom Committee noticed the attempts to ban the publication.