Freedom to Read Week

According to the Freedom to Read website: Freedom to Read Week is an annual event that encourages Canadians to think about and reaffirm their commitment to intellectual freedom, which is guaranteed them under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Freedom to Read Week is organized by the Freedom of Expression Committee of the Book and Periodical Council.

Freedom to Read Week is February 26 - March 3, 2012.

Each year a Canadian author is awarded the Writers' Union of Canada's 2012 Freedom to Read Award. This year's recipient is Lawrence Hill who was honoured because of "his reasoned and eloquent response to the threat to burn his novel The Book of Negroes," according to Greg Hollingshead, chair of the Writers Union.

The full story was covered in a past entry about Lawrence Hill. A Dutch group called Foundation Honor and Restore Victims of Slavery in Suriname had planned to burn Hill's book to protest the use of the word "negro" in the title. Ironically, the Book of Negroes' title comes from an actual historical document which recorded the names of 3,000 African slaves who were moved from New York to Nova Scotia, then to Africa.

It is not the first time the title has stirred controversy. The Book of Negroes was called Someone Knows My Name in the US and Australia, while in Quebec, it was given the name of the main character and titled Aminata.

Top Ten Challenged Books for 2010 (US)

The Office for Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association (ALA) has released the Top Ten Challenged Books for 2010. 
  
1. "And Tango Makes Three" by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson
Reasons: Homosexuality, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group

2. "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian" by Sherman Alexie
Reasons: Offensive language, Racism, Sex Education, Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group, Violence

3. "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley
Reasons: Insensitivity, Offensive Language, Racism, Sexually Explicit

4. "Crank" by Ellen Hopkins
Reasons: Drugs, Offensive Language, Sexually Explicit

5. "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
 Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group, Violence

6. "Lush" by Natasha Friend
Reasons: Drugs, Offensive Language, Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group

7. "What My Mother Doesn’t Know" by Sonya Sones
Reasons: Sexism, Sexually Explicit, Unsuited to Age Group

8. "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Reasons: Drugs, Inaccurate, Offensive Language, Political Viewpoint, Religious Viewpoint

9. "Revolutionary Voices" edited by Amy Sonnie
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit

10. "Twilight" by  Stephenie Meyer
Reasons: Religious Viewpoint, Violence

Read one or more of these for our "Banned Book Challenge" or find more lists on the sidebar.  The challenge runs until June 30.

Library Threatened over Screening of "Sicko"

The Journal-Enquirer, North Central Connecticut's newspaper reported last week that The Enfield Public Library was faced with a hard decision.  


The planned screening of Michael Moore's controversial documentary "Sicko," which is very critical of the US health system came under fire from Enfield's mayor and a number of town council members, following a complaint from a resident.  The library had begun a new nonfiction film series and Moore's 2007 documentary which had been nominated for an Academy Award was considered a poor choice by resident Kevin Fealy who pressured the library to cancel the showing.  Fealy's concern was that he didn't want the town "“to promote material such as this on my tax dollars.”

Library Director, Henry Dutcher, was asked to cancel the film by the town manager, his supervisor.  Funding to the library was threatened by Mayor Scott R. Kaupin who is quoted as saying, "...if they don’t reconsider, then they’re going to have the repercussions of the council....I mean, in the end, when budget time comes and Mr. Dutcher is asking for funding he’s going to have to answer for it.”  It is Kaupin's opinion that the library should steer clear of "controversial" material and "Do nice stuff.  Do uncontroversial...."


The only council member to speak against the decision was Councillor Cynthia Mangini, calling it censorship.  


The Connecticut Library Association is deciding upon its response which could include suing the town.


It is time once more for the Banned Book Challenge.  Celebrate Canadians' freedom to read by reading a banned or challenged book.  Sign up now. 

Update:  Following the controversy raised by the Town of Enfield's decision to pressure the library to pull the showing of "Sicko," the Town reversed its decision.  Read more about it at the ALA website. 

Homeland Security and Willful Copyright Infringement

Since when is copyright infringement a homeland security issue? Just asking....

According to a number of members of the web4lib listserv, a number of sites have been taken down by the US government under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act), in part, for copyright infringement. Mashable has more information on the taking down of Torrent-Finder.com. 82 domain names were seized and replaced with the notice below.

In related but separate news, COICA (Combating Online Infrigement and Counterfeit Act) which was introduced as a bill on September 20th, 2010 received a unanimous 19-0 pass in the Senate Judiciary Committee and is awaiting a vote from the full senate. According to "Web Censorship Bill Sails Through Senate Committee," an article on Wired, the committee moved quickly to pass the bill that would allow entire sites to be shut down, allowing government censorship without due process.

While illegal activity with regard to intellectual property should be curbed, many people are concerned about the wide-sweeping powers of this proposed bill to shut down legitimate sites without due process.

China Google War

The Official Google Blog has an update on Google's approach to the cyber attack Google exposed. The announcement made by Google on January 12, 2010 to stop censoring search results has been covered in a previous blog entry. Follow-up entries can be found here and here.

On March 22, 2010, Google stopped censoring search results in mainland China. Searches conducted through Google.cn are being redirected to Hong Kong servers which will deliver uncensored results. According to the Google blog, "the Chinese government has been crystal clear throughout our discussions that self-censorship is a non-negotiable legal requirement." Google believes they have found a legal solution but one that is precarious since China could decide to block access to Google at any time. Google has created a web site to report daily on which Google services are available in China.

Sify News reports that AP reporters have been testing different search words and findings vary widely.

Thenextweb.com describes Google's move to use Hong Kong servers as a "subversive move" which may be damaging to the company. China has reacted to Google's move by blasting it through the state-run People's Daily. The Chinese government stated that Google's

...collusion with the U.S. intelligence and security agencies is well-known…All this makes one wonder. Thinking about the United States’ big efforts in recent years to engage in Internet war, perhaps this could be an exploratory pre-dawn battle.

Meanwhile, support for Google continues to be shown through the numbers of Chinese people leaving flowers on the sign outside of Google China's headquarters.

For Chad Catacchio’s take on the situation, check out the video.



You have the freedom to read, so take the Banned Book Challenge. Register the number of books you have set for your goal between now and June 30 on the online form. I will publish any reviews that are sent in the near future.

The Legacy of Judith Krug

Art: Balimore City Paper


The Baltimore City Paper has published a tribute to Judith Krug.

You may not know this librarian's name but in the US, she fought for free speech and the freedom to read. According to the article by Anna Ditkoff, Krug's mother found her young daughter reading a book about sex with a flashlight one night. Her mother reacted by asking her to turn on the light so she didn't hurt her eyes.

Krug adopted her parents' philosophy with her own children.

In 1967, she became the founding director of the ALA's (American Library Association)Office for Intellectual Freedom and two years later helped create the Freedom to Read Foundation, a group that provides funding for legal aid in First Amendment cases. In 1982, Krug founded Banned Books Week to promote awareness.
In 1996, she battled an attempt to censor the internet in libraries, taking the legal fight all the way to the Supreme Court. In 2001, Krug and other librarians led a vocal fight against the Patriot Act which endangered the privacy of patrons' library records.

She lost her fight to stomach cancer this past April at the age of 69.

China Denies Involvement in Attacks on Google

China has finally spoken out regarding the cyber attacks alleged to have originated in China, the BBC reported yesterday. China denies state involvement. An unnamed spokesperson from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in China stated, "The accusation that the Chinese government participated in [any] cyber attack, either in an explicit or inexplicit way, is groundless." He added, "China's policy on internet safety is transparent and consistent."

The US is being accused of hypocrisy since China believes "certain government agencies" illegally checked a massive number of personal e-mail accounts.


Cox and Forkum Political Cartoon

Google China Saga Continues

Illustration Bezinga.com

Google CEO Eric Schmidt remains committed to stay in China, according to statements made yesterday. As reported in a previous post, there was a "highly sophisticated and targeted attack" on a number of high profile computer companies in China and Google threatened to pull out of China unless it could provide uncensored results. According to today's Telegraph, Schmidt has confirmed that that Google and China have been "in conversation." Schmidt added that they wish to remain in China but that they would like to be there "on somewhat different terms" than they have in the past. Although Google has continued to censor searches according to Chinese law, sources within Google said there are no plans to revoke their earlier stand on censorship. Stated Schmitd, "We continue to follow their laws, we continue to offer censored results. But in a reasonably short time from now we will be making some changes there."

PC World offers a timeline of the Google/China incident.

The Financial Post reports that Microsoft has released a patch for Explorer to secure the breach through which someone was able to target Google and other companies. Instead of releasing it on Tuesdays, as they have done with other patches, this patch was made available as soon as it was ready.

As expected, Google's presence in China and their threat to pull out continues to be addressed in the political arena. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made unrestricted Internet access a top foreign-policy priority and urged China to investigate cyber intrusions that led Google Inc. to threaten to pull out of that country, the Wall Street Journal reports which also reported on China's reaction to Clinton's statements.

It will be interesting to see how all of this unfolds.

Final Word on Vamos a Cuba

According to School Library Journal, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear arguments to overturn a decision by the Miami-Dade School District that took Vamos a Cuba off of public school library shelves. This means that the decision of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals stands.

Opponents of the book described it as factually inaccurate because it "paints too rosy a picture of life in the communist nation."

The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this week declined to take up the case of the controversial book by Alta Schreier, letting stand a 2–1 decision earlier this year by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled that the school board's decision to remove the book was not censorship in violation of the First Amendment. Instead, the Atlanta-based appeals court said the school board was seeking to remove the book because it contained substantial factual inaccuracies. Vamos a Cuba is one of a series of books on various countries in the world written for children aged four to eight.

American Banned Books Week

Just a quick reminder that the American Library Association Banned Books Weeks runs from September 26 − October 3, 2009. Check out the little drama created by Puppet Book Banners.

Obscene in the Extreme

The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck has always drawn fire for its honest and raw portrayal of migrant life in the 1930s. Now a new book -- Obscene in the Extreme -- gives a more complete picture of the opposition it has faced over the years. Read an excerpt.

US Banned Book Week

Banned Books Week in the US

Banned Books Week in the United States is September 27 - October 4, 2008. Banned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read is observed during the last week of September each year. It is the 27th anniversary of this annual ALA event which is is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association, American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression, American Library Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Association of American Publishers, National Association of College Stores, and is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

Visit the ALA (American Library Association)web site for ideas on how to commemorate the week, resources, and for lists of banned or challenged books.

"The F Word" Free Documentary

THE F WORD follows radio DJ Joe Pace, who is being forced off the air after racking up $1 million in unpaid FCC indecency fines. For his final show, Joe takes to the streets of New York to cover the protests around the Republican National Convention, discovering that the city’s politics are as diverse as its residents. Combining fictional scenes set among actual protests with documentary footage of real people, director Jed Weintrob weaves a seamless narrative about America’s struggle to find the balance between preserving national security and protecting free speech.

For Kids

The American Library Association (ALA) has a publication called Kids, Know Your Rights. It is subtitled A Young Person’s Guide to Intellectual Freedom and it is directed at children. Although it is more relevant to the United States, there are aspects that might be helpful for classroom situations. It explains the First Amendment and the Bill of Rights for US children, as well as the role and responsibility of the library when one of their books is challenged.

Below is an excerpt:

An opinion is a belief in something. Everyone has
the right to have any opinion on any topic. Sharing
different opinions with others leads to new ideas. The
freedom to speak your opinion is protected by the
Constitution, and the freedom to learn from someone
else’s opinion is a privilege you should protect. When
you listen to others’ opinions, you may change your
mind, or you may believe in your own opinion even
more. It is impossible to know everything, and most
things we learn come from someone else. Always feel
free to speak and always be willing to listen. If you
respect and support other people’s rights to share their
ideas and beliefs, they will in turn respect and support
your rights. One of the greatest gifts we can give is to
listen and to appreciate each other’s differences.
Freedom of Speech is both a great freedom and a
great responsibility.

A list of titles for further reading is included. Both fiction and non-fiction titles for children are included.

What Do Firemen Do?

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury depicts firemen burning books. It is what they do. In a story that is disconcerting for those of us who believe in the right of freedom to read, MSNBC reports that firefighters are being trained by Homeland Security in the USA in a test program. They are being trained to look for illegal materials and report people who may be "hostile, uncooperative or expressing hate or discontent with the United States."

While law enforcement officials have stringent rules that control their access to private property, fire fighters have access in order to make inspections for the purposes of preventing fires. The ACLU is concerned about the implications of this program with regard to first amendment issues.

According to New York City Fire Chief Salvatore Cassano, information related to terrorism has been passed on from firefighters to law enforcement since the program began three years ago.

It would be interesting to see what kind of information officials are collecting that they believe relates to terrorism and to what degree one needs to be "discontent" before one is reported to the government.

This would be great fodder for a dystopian novel. Oh, wait....

MTV Movies Blog reports that Tom Hanks is showing great interest in starring as Guy Montag, the “fireman” in Fahrenheit 451.

JudeoChristian Worldview and Book Challenges

This is Banned Book Week in the U.S.

Novel Journey presents an interview with Rebecca Zeidel, Program Director for American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression. The web log is part of Christian Women Online.

Zeidel responds to the following questions:
What is Banned Book Week?
What is the goal of Banned Book Week?
What percentage of books are challenged or banned because of moral content? Political content? Racial content? Violence? Other (please explain)?
Who suffers the most if a book is challenged?
How can novelists support Banned Book Week?
Which states or regions are more likely to jump on the banning band wagon?

Zeidel identifies the Howell, MI banning of 5 titles in a response to this question: What is the most appalling situation you've seen or heard of regarding a challenged book?

In February, five books were challenged in Howell, MI for sexual themes and profanity: Black Boy by Richard Wright, Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs, The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut, and The Freedom Writers Diary by Erin Gruwell. The books were challenged in Howell High School in by members of the Livingston Organization for Values in Education (LOVE) with assistance from the Michigan chapter of the American Family Association.

According to its web site,

The American Family Association represents and stands for traditional family values, focusing primarily on the influence of television and other media – including pornography – on our society.

Of great interest, since a number of challenges come from the religious sector is Zeidel's answer to this question: "How can novelists who write from a JudeoChristian worldview support free speech?"

Banned Book Week

Our neighbours to the south will soon be celebrating their Banned Books Week. For resources and ideas, visit the American Library Association site where there is a link to Suggestions on How to Celebrated Banned Books Week.

Muzzle Award

The 2007 Jefferson Muzzle Award was presented to a number of people and organizations in the US, including the Miami-Dade School Board for its banning of a children's book entitled "A Visit to Cuba" after a parent complained it showed the communist state in too positive a light.

The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression has awarded over one hundred and sixty Jefferson Muzzles in the past sixteen years. According to their web site:

Announced on or near April 13 — the anniversary of the birth of Thomas Jefferson — the Jefferson Muzzles are awarded as a means to draw national attention to abridgments of free speech and press and, at the same time, foster an appreciation for those tenets of the First Amendment.

Here is the full 2007 Muzzle Award List:

1. REP. PETER KING, R-N.Y., for advocating a criminal investigation of The New York Times after it reported on government surveillance of international financial transactions.

2. THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION, for broadening the scope of broadcast material that constitutes indecency and targeting profanity.

3. THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE, for its surveillance of anti-war organizations.

4. THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION, for changing and censoring reports and studies of government scientists.

5. THE OHIO GENERAL ASSEMBLY, for passing a bill requiring state employees to sign a form declaring one has no ties to terrorist groups and gives no financial or material assistance to groups on the State Department's terrorist list.

6. KENTUCKY REPUBLICAN GOV. ERNIE FLETCHER, for blocking access to liberal-leaning Web sites from state-owned computers, while still permitting access to conservative sites.

7. MAINE'S BUREAU OF LIQUOR ENFORCEMENT, for banning the sale of three beers because of label illustrations.

8. THE EAST ST. LOUIS (ILL.) CITY COUNCIL, for forcing a public access show supportive of an incumbent mayor's political opponent off the air.

9. THE PHILADELPHIA HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION, for filing a discrimination complaint against a cheese steak shop owner after he posted a bumper sticker at his business that stated, "This is America: When ordering 'Speak English.' "

10. THE NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION, for its policy on school mascots and team logos.

11. THE CHARLES A. BEARD MEMORIAL SCHOOL BOARD IN KNIGHTSTOWN, IND., for expelling four students who created a video that featured evil stuffed animals' unsuccessful attempt to kill a teacher.

12. WATSON CHAPEL SCHOOL DISTRICT IN ARKANSAS, for suspending about 20 students who protested the district's dress code by wearing black armbands.

13. MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD, for banning a children's book titled "A Visit to Cuba" after a parent complained it wasn't critical enough of the communist state.

14. TIE: BEN DAVIS HIGH SCHOOL IN INDIANAPOLIS, PRINCETON HIGH SCHOOL IN CINCINNATI AND WYOMING VALLEY WEST HIGH SCHOOL IN KINGSTON, PA., for censoring the content of high school publications.

Visit the archives for past years' Muzzle Award winners.

Do Americans Still Believe in the Principles of the U.S. Constitution?

ONE OF OUR [U.S.] GREAT WEAPONS CAN'T BE TAKEN LIGHTLY
By Mike Levine

Times Herald-Record
January 14, 2007

Wednesday, December 6, 1989 - In China, pro-democracy students are secretly quoting Jefferson. Lech Walesa said Poles look to Lincoln's writings for inspiration. The freedom movements in Czechoslovakia and East Germany are among the century's great stories.

Liberty is suddenly the worldwide rage.

But is freedom still an American passion? We fly the flag, all right, and in our last presidential election, the Pledge of Allegiance was a big issue. Yet surveys suggest that if the Bill of Rights were voted on today, Americans would turn it down. We're said to have grown intolerant and jaded.

To find out if the principles of freedom are as alive in the mid-Hudson as in East Berlin, I wrote up a ``limits of freedom'' opinion survey and passed it out to 24 seniors at Middletown High School. I also gave the survey to two dozen mid-Hudson adults.

You might want to take it yourself. Remember, this is not a ``right or wrong'' test, but an opinion survey.

1) Freedom of speech should NOT be permitted if it: - damages the credibility of the government.

Agree . . . Disagree

- promotes beliefs that go against religious teachings.

Agree . . . Disagree

- ridicules the president.

Agree . . . Disagree

- voices opposition to any portion of the U.S. Constitution.

Agree . . . Disagree

- defends the burning of the American flag.

Agree . . . Disagree

- only presents one side of an issue.

Agree . . . Disagree

- denies the existence of God.

Agree . . . Disagree

2) If a law enforcement officer suspects someone of a crime, he should be able to arrest that person until evidence is gathered.

Agree . . . Disagree

3) If a person has evidence that would incriminate him in a crime, he should be required to confess.

Agree . . . Disagree

4) Those demonstrating in the streets against official government policy should be arrested.

Agree . . . Disagree

5) If a majority of Americans believe a book is unfair to our nation's reputation, it should be banned.

Agree . . . Disagree

6) Because a majority of Americans are Christian, it should be the official religion of the United States.

Agree . . . Disagree

7) Police should be able to arrest people who they believe are likely to commit crimes.

Agree . . . Disagree

In this questionnaire, each ``agree'' answer was a vote to eliminate freedoms already guaranteed in the Constitution. A ``disagree'' answer was a vote to sustain our Constitutional freedoms.

For libertarians, the good news is that both the high school seniors and the adults voted to keep virtually every freedom (both groups had similar results).

The bad news is a little more than half the respondents rejected the 5th Amendment to the Constitution (Question #3). They said a person should be made to incriminate himself.

More than Over a third of the students said a book that unfairly portrays America should be banned. More than Over a quarter of the respondents said opinions should be stifled that deny the existence of God or that poke fun at the president.

Ironically, a third of the people also said speaking out against any portion of the Constitution should be banned.

There's no intent to lecture here. Patriotic Americans disagree as to the limits of freedom.

But when the Cold War was won, it turned out that America's great weapon wasn't guns or bombs.

It was freedom itself.