I would read the statement the other way. If we prohibit a religious school from posting jobs, AALL is in violation of its charter. The charter binds AALL as to how it limits membership and the privileges of membership. It does not address the hiring policies of its members institutions.
_____
PAUL D. CALLISTER, JD, MSLIS
Library Director & Associate Professor of Law
LEON E. BLOCH LAW LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY SCHOOL OF LAW
"Librarianship remains the last refuge of idealists." -- Bob Berring, Thinkable Thoughts, Law Librarians 3 (Sept. - Oct. 2003).
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu [mailto:owner-law-lib@ucdavis.edu]On Behalf Of Scott Burgh
Sent: Friday, March 12, 2004 10:59 AM
To: law-lib@ucdavis.edu
Subject: RE: Position Announcement - Reference Librarian - Liberty University
I read with great interest all the comments regarding the job ad for Liberty University. I think many of the comments miss the real issue at hand. It is not about free speech because there is no governmental unit attempting to abridge free speech or expression here. It is not about the role or function of religious institutions in society. It is not about whether to apply or not to apply for the job.
This issue is antidiscrimination by a law library with a religious affiliation. The antidiscrimination clause in the job ad by Liberty is inconsistent and not as broad with Article III of the AALL bylaws which read:
"Membership in the Association or in any of its chapters, or participation in any activity of the Association or its chapters, shall not be denied or abridged on account of race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability or sexual orientation."
If an institution in AALL does not wish to abide by our governing document, then they should not participate in the association's activities. It was the authority of this same antidiscrimination clause that the AALL Board elected to move the 1998 annual meeting out of Denver after the passage of Amendment 2 in Colorado.
Scott Burgh
Chief Law Librarian
City of Chicago Department of Law Library
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