If one were to take the celebration of Banned Books Week
literally, then it would perhaps make sense. In other words, the librarians, publishers et
al would be celebrating the books, periodicals, and patrons they’ve successfully banned or
shunned over the years. The rampant
hypocrisy in the very heart of the American Library Association, which seems to
be the chief sponsor of the event, as
well as that of the multitude of library directors spread across the nation like the proverbial layer of stale peanut butter,
clearly needs to be exposed. The celebration
seems to have become nothing more than a self-congratulatory act of
backslapping. If there were an iota of
integrity in it, a place, no matter how small, would be devoted to criticism of
it and of the many librarians, as well as approving poets and writers, who do in fact ban books, periodicals, and even
patrons.
Politically-correct
journalist Bill Moyers and wife were named Honorary
Co-Chairs of this year’s celebration, which immediately politicizes the celebration. One must wonder how many books and periodicals published by
right-wingers critical of Islam, Obama, and/or PC have been shunned by the
likes of Moyers and wife. And why
appoint such a buffered and wealthy couple to be honorary co-chairs? Why not appoint instead someone who has
indeed tested librarians over the years to determine just how open, or rather closed, they really are to new books and periodicals, not to mention criticism of them?
With that regard, Charles Willett, founding editor of Counterpoise and
retired librarian, comes to mind. At the
Fifth National Conference of the Association of College and Research Libraries,
he stated: “In almost all the 45
libraries studied here, and probably hundreds and hundreds more across the
country, we have failed our professional duty to seek out diverse political
views. [...] These books are not expensive. Their absence from our libraries
makes a mockery of ALA’s vaunted ‘freedom to read.’ But we do not even notice
that we are censoring our collections. Complacently, we watch our new automated
systems stuff the shelves with Henry Kissinger’s memoirs.”
So, why celebrate such a despicably deplorable record? Why not instead satirize the intellectually corrupt bibliotards, philes, and snubs, as I've done regarding the ALA’s Office of Intellectual Freedom
(see http://www.theamericandissident.org/orgs/american_library_association.html )? The OIF, by the way, remains utterly indifferent to my complaint of being permanently trespassed without warning or due process by Sturgis Library, which celebrates Banned Books Week, though not this year, according to its fascistic director Lucy Loomis? The only response from the ALA to my complaint was from Valerie Hawkins, though not of the Office of Intellectual Freedom:
At any
rate, the policies of any local public library are set by its board of
trustees. Any and all complaints as to your treatment by its employees
should be taken up with the library’s trustees, as they would be the ones who
would decide if there was library staff misconduct and then could take steps
accordingly.
We’re in
Chicago. We have no jurisdiction whatsoever
over your local public library and your problems with them.
You’ll
need to work this out on your own, with your own local resources and legal
authorities.
Now, does Hawkins seem at all interested
or concerned? And what happens, as in my
case, when the board of trustees refuses to even respond and when one of the trustees, boyfriend of
the director, Dan Santos, dismisses my criticism as “intellectual masturbation” without even examining it, if in fact he's even capable of doing so? And how might one explain the total refusal
of PEN New England (“defending freedom of expression”) to respond to my complaints of having my
freedom of expression truncated here and there in New England at several libraries, including Watertown Free Public Library, which trespassed me for three months for simply trying to get the ref librarian Ardis Francoeur to understand why she should at least consider subscribing to The American Dissident? Calling director Karen Wulf, calling director
Karen Wulf! Sorry, nobody home. PEN is of course a Banned Books Week sponsor. And how might one explain Suffolk University
Poetry Center’s refusal to consider subscribing to The American Dissident, a journal of literature, democracy, and
dissidence? In fact, it too would not
respond, that is until the student editor I’d contacted confronted Fred
Marchant, its director and former PEN New England director. And why does the National Coalition Against
Censorship refuse to respond regarding my complaint against PEN’s blatant
hypocrisy? Well, it too is listed as a
main sponsor. How does one explain the
refusal of famous City Lights Bookstore to carry The American Dissident?
Perhaps because it’s been critical of Beatniks? City Lights is of course a big promoter of Banned
Books Week.
Could I
possibly be the only one in America who’s been banned from a publicly-funded
library for written criticism? Could the
periodical I publish be the only one that’s ever been banned from an entire
library system like the Clams Library System of Cape Cod? Could the flyers I attempted to distribute be
the only ones ever banned from a publicly-funded library? Now that’s highly unlikely. But dissidents like me, who actually question
and challenge celebrity dissidents like Moyers, tend to be fully ostracized by
the established-order system, be it the biblio or cultural sectors.
Finally, the ALA stipulates that “Banned Books Week brings together the entire book
community—librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and
readers of all types—in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express
ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.” But does it really? Readers of all types? Certainly not my type! And doesn’t the commercialization of such a
serious subject as censorship serve to demean it, though fill the pockets of
dubious types like Moyers and ALA executives?
“Help support Banned Books Week by purchasing t-shirts,
buttons, and more. Shop!” Christ.
