Letters

As a librarian who has lived through… Pearl Harbor…the 'election' of George W. Bush…I heartily commend your strong stand against censorship (John Berry, 'In Crises, We Need Librarians More ,' LJ 11/1/01). The last thing the public needs at times like these is protection by ignorance. The free exchange of information is one of the fundamental principles of democracy and the right and obligation of every citizen.

When information is available only in carefully doctored 'sound bites' and 'photo opportunities' and informed decisions are denied to the electorate, the terrorists have succeeded in damaging our country. Freely accessible information, be it good news or bad, is an essential part of our way of life, and we, as librarians, have a responsibility to protect and preserve it.

—Paula Frosch, Assoc. Libn., Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

I enjoyed Nancy Kranich's 'Libraries Create Social Capital ' (LJ 11/15/01) but hasten to add a historical note. American libraries have actually functioned as sites for the exchange of social capital for centuries.

In the 18th century, many people gathered at the circulating libraries attached to coffee shops (no, Barnes and Noble was not the originator of the concept) to discuss the latest news and ideas from Europe. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, hundreds of cities and towns receiving Carnegie grants designed rooms into their buildings where community organizations met regularly. In the mid-20th century, librarians like Margaret Monroe at the New York Public Library deliberately used the library as a site to broker publicly questions about democracy at a time when McCarthyist ideas put a particular spin on its definition.

Libraries have long functioned as sites for the exchange of social capital. However, because as a profession we have mostly focused on the user in the life of the library rather than the library in the life of the user, we've historically overlooked this contribution to society and undervalued its role in community construction. That's why the idea that 'libraries create social capital' seems so new to us today.

—Wayne A. Wiegand, Prof., SLIS, Univ. of Wisconsin–Madison

In Blaise Cronin's screed ('Amazons R Us ,' LJ 10/15/01), he seems to be unaware that the 'redoubtable' Camille Paglia revels in calling herself an Amazon feminist. Perhaps he takes issue only when the Amazons in question wield laptops.

LJ should be embarrassed to print a regular column from a reactionary professor who can't even be bothered to get his quotes right. Instead of giving voice to Cronin, LJ should consider recruiting—as a regular contributor—one of the many excellent feminist scholars he so maligns. This might provide Cronin with some additional reading material in the field and enable him to form a more educated understanding of feminist librarianship.

—Rachel Singer Gordon, Webmaster, Lisjobs.com

Ed. note: Gordon debuts as LJ's Computer Media columnist on p. 140.

Cronin's tumid ritornello on feminism ('Amazons R Us ,' LJ 10/15/01)…is a rehash of what he's written about before, and it attributes a quote from Karen Schneider to Sarah Pritchard. Library science faculty have an obligation to avoid plagiarism (even of self) and to demonstrate an understanding of bibliometrics.

—Kathleen de la Peña McCook, Univ. of South Florida, Tampa

I was pleased to see the letter reminding us that libraries can educate the public regarding the history and politics of the current 'war on terrorism' ('Managing emotions,' Letters , LJ 11/1/01). Our library's first reaction was to mount a display of solidarity and condolence messages from around the world. However, a little bit of substance did find its way into the exhibit.

Since I head an Africana Unit, we decided to use our small exhibit space to post African opinions on terrorism and the U.S. response. Although all of these commentaries oppose terrorism, some of them are quite critical of U.S. foreign policies.

The U.S. mass media is consciously obscuring the range of world opinion on U.S. government policy. They are doing this on clear direction from the White House. President Bush has even taken the extreme step of hiring a PR person to handle American public opinion. From the mass media coverage, no one would ever know that large numbers of people in the United States are actively against the bombing of Afghanistan or openly questioning the need to wreck a country's infrastructure. Large numbers of Americans probably do not know that literally millions of Afghans are in danger of starvation as a result of the bombing.

This is a critical time for libraries to fulfill their information mission and provide information that is not elsewhere readily available. Considering the current climate, it will take courage, but I know that some of us will not be deterred.

—Al Kagan, African Studies Bibliographer and Prof. of Lib. Admin., Univ. of Illinois Lib., Urbana