Flailing through the Archives

I’ve been mulling this over for a while now. If one of the primary reasons archivists are unwilling or afraid to come forward with information is possible litigation and job loss, then there should be a way to encourage whistle blowing or at least protections for archives that receive and make available materials like the cigarette papers.

I propose that archivists should consider an Archivists Legal Defense Fund. Modeled after the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBLDF), which focuses on first amendment rights for comic book authors, the CBLDF is primarily funded through donations, which provides authors with legal defense. The CBLDF is not obligated to take every case that they receive. The Archivist’s Legal Defense Fund would have a different goal of reducing secrecy in the government and corporations by providing legal defense for archives, archivists, and records mangers that disclose information to the public.

The community would need to create stronger ties to lawyers, as well as the ACLU. Additionally, institutions can create ties to university law schools. The organization would run on donations from the archival community and would be open for petitions from individuals facing litigation related to disclosure. Cases submitted to the defense fund would not necessarily be defended. This would prevent defense of archivists and records managers who disclose trade secrets and proprietary information for unethical reasons.

There could be several benefits to creating this organization.
-Increased openness and accountability in government, NGOs, and corporations.
- Creation of an archival backbone,
- Increased professionalism and accountability.
- Legal protections
- Creation of a stronger sense of community.

Any thoughts?

(Crossposted to my Access and Ethics class blog)