Intellectual Freedom

In Toronto, the principal of a public elementary school recently invited parents to participate in a “library audit.” Parents were given a copy of the Toronto District School Board’s Equity Toolkit, and they were told to evaluate library books according to a checklist. Ira Wells, an assistant professor of literature at the University of Toronto, took part in the audit.

In Ontario, the Upper Canada District School Board has ordered its teachers to stop assigning Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None to students. The school board regards a few references in the mystery novel as anti-Semitic. REPORTAGE In the National Post, Jessica Mundie reports:

Danielle MacKinlay, a long-time government librarian, is joining the Centre for Free Expression’s Working Group on Intellectual Freedom. Danielle has been Manager, Library Services for the Canadian Coast Guard since 2005. Currently, Danielle is on assignment in the Human Resources Corporate Services within Fisheries and Oceans Canada, as an advisor on employment equity, diversity and inclusion.