Library Juice 2:6 - February 10, 1999

 
 
Contents: 
 
1. MSRRT Newsletter (web version) - new URL 
2. Library Research Services - http://www.lrs.org/ 
3. Very short notice: Hearing on Copyright and Distance Ed. 
4. Call for action on Barnes & Noble/Ingram merger 
5. American Libraries Online February 8 news stories (ad) 
6. Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports [.pdf] 
7. CIA World Factbook 1998 
8. Students in Iceland stage a sit-in for longer library hours, succeed 
9. Closing of International Lyrics Server: news & comments 
10. Fast MP3 Search (CD-Quality, small file-size, copyright nightmare) 
11. SLA's 1999 Steven I. Goldspiel Research Grant 
12. LAMA writing competition for LIS students 
13. SLA News Division's Vormelker-Thomas Student Award 
14. Sandy Berman's bibliography on Mumia Abu-Jamal, with additions 
15. SLA forum: THE INTERNET AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF THREE COMMUNITIES 
16. John Philbrook's false accusation at SFPL, unfortunate aftermath 
17. Revised Boy Scouts Resolution Passes at ALA Midwinter 
18. Remembering Marvin Scilken, Unabashed Librarian 
 
 
 
Quote for the week: 
 
	"Critics examine the most recurrent words in a book 
	and count them! 
 
	 Look instead for the words the author avoided, those 
	he was close to or unmistakably far from, alien to, 
	or fastidious about, whereas others are not." 
 
	Henri Michaux, _Porteaux d'Angle_ 
	(1981, Editions Gallimard).  In translation: 
	_Tent Posts_, translated by Lynn Hogard 
	(1997, Green Integer Books, Copenhagen) 
 
 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
1. MSRRT Newsletter (web version) - new URL 
 
Chris Dodge has informed me that the MSRRT Newsletter (web verion) has a 
new URL: http://www.cs.unca.edu/~edmiston/msrrt 
 
For those who don't know about it already, The MSRRT Newsletter is 
ostensibly the newsletter of the Minnesota Library Association's Social 
Responsibilities Round Table.  The title is deceptive, however.  It's not 
a report of the organizations activities, but a zine full of reviews of 
materials that belong in libraries but are not usually easy to find.  It 
also contains numerous articles about library issues from a progressive 
standpoint.  I've received it in print form since before starting library 
school, and regard it as a staple.  So, change your links or make a new 
one! -ed. 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
2. Library Research Services - http://www.lrs.org/ 
 
        Statistics and information on all types of libraries of interest 
        to librarians and library managers are available here. Fast 
        Facts offers one to three page overview statistical reports, 
        several of a national nature, covering public, academic, and 
        school libraries (PDF format). They maintain a page of links 
        to the statistics departments of state library agencies for 
        public libraries and another for academic library statistics. In 
        addition their Other Sites section has annotated links 
        covering research on libraries, literacy, users, and 
        technology. LRS is a collaboration between the Colorado 
        State Library the Library and Information Sciences 
        Department of the University of Denver. - ew 
 
 
From: Librarians' Index to the Internet 
http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/InternetIndex/ 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
3. Very short notice: Hearing on Copyright and Distance Ed. 
 
 
The US Copyright Office is holding a hearing in about 10 days on the 
impact of the new copyright act on distance education 
(http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/disted/). They gave very little notice 
about this and are hardly allowing any testimony.  This has tremendous 
implications about access to information, fair use, etc.  I've prepared 
testimony that I plan to present to them on Feb 10, which I've posted at 
http://www.sims.berkeley.edu/impact/Distance/disted-testimony.html 
The PLG members at an ALA dinner in Philadelphia endorsed my prepared 
statement.  Let me know if you've got any more feedback. 
 
[PLG stands for Progressive Librarians Guild.  For more information 
about this group, see http://www.libr.org/PLG  -ed.] 
._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._. 
Howard Besser 
Associate Professor 
UCLA Department of Information Studies 
 
address thru August 1999: 
School of Information Management & Systems 
102 South Hall 
University of California 
Berkeley, CA  94720-4600 
tel:    (510)643-7365 
office: (510)642-1464 
fax:    (510)642-5814 
howard[at]sims.berkeley.edu 
http://www.sims.berkeley.edu/~howard/ 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
4. Call for action on Barnes & Noble/Ingram merger 
 
 
Date: Fri, 5 Feb 1999 09:25:30 -0800 (PST) 
From: Kate Bradley <kbradley[at]ctc.ctc.edu> 
To: plgnet-l[at]listproc.sjsu.edu 
Subject: Barnes & Noble/Ingram merger 
MIME-Version: 1.0 
Reply-To: kbradley[at]ctc.ctc.edu 
Sender: owner-PLGNet-L[at]listproc.sjsu.edu 
Status: U 
 
There is an excellent article in the February 1 issue of the Christian 
Science Monitor (p.9) re the effect of the Barnes & Noble/Ingram merger 
upon Intellectual Freedom.  The Authors Guild and the American Booksellers 
Association are both petitioning the FTC to stop the merger.  Shouldn't 
the American Library Association also be active in this effort? 
Kate Bradley, Bellevue CC Library, WA 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
For those interested in getting involved in this, the Alternatives in Print 
Task force of ALA's Social Responsibilities Round Table is forming a 
committee.  If you would like to contibute your ideas and energy, please 
contact Debra Gilchrist at dgilchri[at]pierce.edu. 
 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
5. American Libraries Online February 8 news stories (ad) 
 
 
Date: Fri, 05 Feb 1999 18:33:10 -0600 
From: "Gordon Flagg" <gflagg[at]ala.org> 
To: member-forum[at]ala.org 
Subject: American Libraries Online February 8 news stories (ad) 
Reply-To: member-forum[at]ala.org 
Sender: owner-member-forum[at]ala.org 
Status: U 
 
News stories appearing in the February 8 American Libraries Online 
http://www.ala.org/alonline/ 
 
*  Outsourcing Debate Dominates ALA Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia 
*  Sachar, Azarian take Newbery, Caldecott Prizes 
*  Maverick Librarian Marvin Scilken Dies at ALA Midwinter 
*  Educators Evince Confidence at ALISE Conference 
*  Expressing Regret, Judge Bars Enforcement of Child Online Protection Act 
*  Clinton Budget Proposes National Digital Library 
*  Representatives Garner Support for Attack on E-Rate 
*  Gates Foundation Expands to Include School Funding 
*  Pennsylvania Governor Proposes Historic Increase for Public Libraries 
*  San Diego Mayor Eyes Tobacco Funds for New Library 
*  L.A. Libraries Test Internet Filtering in Children's Areas 
*  Arkansas Legislator Switches Internet-Regulation Tactics 
*  UNLV Library Building Needs More Support 
*  St. Tammany Libraries Replay Restrictions on R, NC-17 Videos 
*  Volusia County Council Rescinds Filtering Policy 
*  Censorship-by-Petition Bill Defeated -- Sort Of 
*  Rolling Stone Gathers Supporters in School-Library Challenge 
*  Parent Challenges Gang-Life Book 
*  Parliamentary Porn Provokes Pundit 
 
American Libraries' Web site also features the latest "Internet 
Librarian" columns by Karen Schneider; AL's "Career Leads" job ads; 
listings of conferences, continuing-education courses, exhibitions, 
and other events from AL's "Datebook"; and Tables of Contents for the 
current year. 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
6. Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports [.pdf] 
 
http://www.senate.gov/~dpc/crs/index.html 
 
In a move hailed by advocates of open government, Senator Tom Daschle 
(D-SD) recently placed almost 300 Congressional Research Service (CRS) 
Reports online (about 1/10th of the current CRS Reports in the library). 
Employing over 700 people at a cost of $62 million per year, the 
Congressional Research Service (CRS) "works exclusively as a nonpartisan 
analytical, research, and reference arm for Congress." Users can browse the 
reports by name, number, or subject, or conduct a keyword search. Subject 
areas include: Environment/Natural Resources, Economic Policy, Education, 
Government and Law, Foreign and Defense Policy, Health, and Science and 
Technology. Reports may be viewed in plain text or .pdf format. [MD] 
 
>From the Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-1999. 
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/ 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
7. CIA World Factbook 1998 
 
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html 
 
The US Central Intelligence Agency has recently released the 1998 version 
of its well-known annual country information reference book (last described 
in the April 3, 1998 Scout Report). Data is available for over 250 
countries. For each country, map and flag, geographic, population, 
government, economic, communication, transportation, military, and 
transnational issue information is provided for the latest year available. 
There are also sixteen individual reference maps and eight appendices. 
Linked to from hundreds of sites, the World Factbook is widely recognized 
as one of the finest online resources for quick country information. [MD] 
 
>From the Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-1999. 
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/ 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
8. Students in Iceland stage a sit-in for longer library hours, succeed 
 
 
(Sent to Library Juice by Martyn Lowe, martynlowe[at]usa.net) 
 
News from Iceland. 
 
Here's the bit on the extended library opening hours. 
 
Sit-ins can have a dramatic effect. In December, university students in 
Reykjavik, Iceland, decided to stage a sit-in one evening and remained 
working in the library until 10 pm, instead of leaving when the library 
closed at 7 pm. They had been unhappy with the opening hours that were in 
force at that time, and were demanding extended opening as well as access 
on Sundays. 
 
Next day the action was reported in the papers, along with a response from 
the university about the expense of extending the opening hours. However, 
the university rector was sympathetic, and as a result, from February 1 
the library is now open till 10 pm Monday to Thursday (7 pm on Fridays), 
and from 9 am - 5 pm and 11 am - 5 pm on Saturdays and Sundays 
respectively. 
 
The extended opening hours not only affect students, as the library in 
question operates as both an academic and national library and is open to 
anyone to use, which means it is also now more accessible to working 
people. 
 
Lowana Veal 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
9. Closing of International Lyrics Server: news & comments 
 
 
> For complete information view their site for the news article in 
>  the New York Times on the Web Cybertimes.  It can also be viewed at 
> 
> http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/01/cyber/articles/19lyrics.html 
 
Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 00:25:47 -0500 (EST) 
From: Frederick W Stoss <fstoss[at]acsu.buffalo.edu> 
To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> 
Subject: International Lyrics Server closed (fwd) 
MIME-Version: 1.0 
Reply-To: srrtac-l[at]ala.org 
Sender: owner-srrtac-l[at]ala.org 
 
FYI. Fred Stoss 
 
Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 10:10:25 -0500 
From: Rick McRae <mcrae[at]ACSU.BUFFALO.EDU> 
 
Interesting (and chilling) article in yesterday's (Jan.19) New York Times. 
 
Here's 1st paragraph: 
 
Lyrics Site in Copyright Dispute Is Closed 
 
By MATTHEW MIRAPAUL 
 
"The International Lyrics Server, a popular Web site 
containing the words to more than 100,000 songs, was 
closed last week after music publishers accused the 
site's Switzerland-based operators of copyright 
violations and police officers seized their computers, 
the site's founder said." 
 
        - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
Anyway, the gist is that the Swiss police arrested the server owner's 
assistant while he was in the shower, on criminal chargees based on a 
complaint by the Harry Fox Agency, representing 8 music-publishing 
industry giants (including Warner/Chappell Music and Polygram). The owners 
of the non-for-profit site will most certainly face heavy fines and jail 
sentences. 
 
So, it is best to remove the www.lyrics.ch link from any personal and/or 
library pages which may include it. 
 
.... 
 
Rick McRae 
Music Library 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
 
 
Date: Tue, 09 Feb 1999 13:47:08 -0800 
From: "Dr. Jack Kennedy" <jack[at]jack.org> 
To:   snopes <snopes[at]snopes.com> 
Cc:   stumpers-l[at]crf.cuis.edu 
Subj: Re: lyrics.ch seized in copyright dispute 
 
Snopes wrote: 
> Nobody did anything remotely equivalent to seizing the notebook of 
> someone who had written down a few song lyrics.  They shut down a 
> web site that was offering thousands of copyrighted song lyrics without 
> permission and without royalty payment. 
 
Yes, they did do something remotely equivalent. What's the difference 
between the two scenarios? The medium? Is storing words on a computer so 
different than writing them in a notebook? Was it the number of people who 
had access? So if you wrote down some words off the radio, that's ok, as 
long as you don't show your buddies, or as long as you have only have a few 
buddies to show? Was it the amount of money that was being made? (Which, by 
the way, was zilch.) 
 
Copyright laws are made for the convenience of the companies and individuals 
selling words, bits, notes, or other forms of art. They act as a kind of gag 
order on the rest of us: certain phrases are claimed--you can't say them 
anymore. The alternative to these seemingly unacceptable laws would be for 
the companies to protect their work with license agreements that trickle all 
the way to the end user. That'd be very inconvenient for all of us, and 
would surely raise the cost of the products, so we go along. 
 
But it's very hard to define what a copyright violation is, and right now 
the law leans way too far in favor of the copyright holder, in my opinion. 
For example, restaurants can't sing Happy Birthday without paying royalties. 
Why restaurants? Why is it ok for you to sing Happy Birthday at your kid's 
party? You see what I mean. 
 
We accept the vagueness in these laws out of convenience, and we trust that 
companies will use the weapon that we've consented to give them in a 
responsible manner. In the case of Pascal de Vries and lyrics.ch, I think 
the bounds have been overstepped. He was hosting a repository for song 
lyrics. He wasn't selling anything, and it's hard for me to imagine how he 
was doing anything but promoting record sales. Now, he's facing possible 
jail 
time. To me, that is absurd. 
 
Now that I've had the last word, I extend my offer to take this off-line. If 
this was a saloon, we'd have to "take it outside." 
 
Peace, 
Jack 
 
 
P.S.  The stumpers archive is offering several of my words to millions of 
people, and I've yet to receive my first royalty check, dammit! 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
  a) It doesn't matter that he wasn't selling anything; he was 
  depriving others of their just sales profits and royalties. 
  Go to Amazon.com and do a search on the word "lyrics" -- you'll 
  find plenty of books that are nothing more than collections of 
  (copyrighted) song lyrics.  The lyrics server was, in effect, 
  distributing the text of copyrighted books.  That the books 
  contained song lyrics rather than short stories or travel 
  information or anything else makes absolutely no difference. 
 
  b) It's not for you (or anyone else) to decide that giving 
  away someone else's intellectual property for free is "promoting 
  their product."  That's for the rightsholders to decide. 
 
  There seems to be this misperception that song lyrics are 
  a commodity with no value outside of specific recordings 
  of the music they accompany, thus anyone is free to do with 
  them what they will.  As sheet music and lyric book sales will 
  attest, they have a very definite value of their own. 
 
 - snopes 
 
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+ 
|    Urban Legends Reference Pages --> http://www.snopes.com          | 
+---------------------------------------------------------------------+ 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
 
10. Fast MP3 Search (CD-Quality, small file-size, copyright nightmare) 
 
 
http://mp3.lycos.com/ 
 
MP3, a file format that offers near-CD quality sound in very small file 
sizes, is one of the most popular computerized audio technologies ever. 
However, the widespread bootlegging of copyrighted music has also made it 
rather controversial, especially where the recording industry is concerned. 
After discovering that MP3 was one of the most requested terms on its 
search engines, Lycos decided to create a search engine just for MP3. Fast 
MP3 Search currently contains over 500,000 files, searchable by artist or 
song name. To assist users, an MP3 Server Reliability Guide ranks the more 
than 1000 FTP servers accessed on a five star system, five being the most 
reliable. Additional resources at the site include ranked links to MP3 
players and encoders and a guide to getting started. Search returns do not 
distinguish between pirated and legally provided songs, but Lycos has 
agreed to work with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) to 
combat copyright infringement. [MD] 
 
>From the Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-1999. 
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/ 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
11. SLA's 1999 Steven I. Goldspiel Research Grant 
 
 
Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 15:50:48 -0500 
From: "Ruth Arnold" <Ruth[at]sla.org> 
To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu 
Subject: Funds for Research:  SLA Goldspiel Grant Deadline 
Mime-Version: 1.0 
 
*****APOLOGIES FOR POSTINGS TO MULTIPLE LISTS***** 
 
         ****Final Announcement**** 
 
Dear Library and Information Science Practitioners and Researchers: 
 
The Special Libraries Association is soliciting proposals for the 
1999 Steven I. Goldspiel Research Grant.  This grant is available 
annually for a research project in the area of special librarianship or 
information management.  The amount of the 1999  grant will be 
approximately $20,000.  Proposals should be postmarked by 
February 28, 1999 and the recipient will be announced in June of 
1999.  The Grant is announced internationally. 
 
Grant proposals should address one of the areas specified in the 
SLA Research Agenda: 
 
-Futures:  how developments in society and technology will impact 
the special library; 
 
-User Issues:  information seeking and use, expert systems, 
human-computer interfaces, information behavior models; 
 
-Measures of Productivity and Value:  measuring value of 
information, use of measures by special librarians; 
 
-Client/User Satisfaction Measures:  adapting satisfaction 
measures to special library/corporate settings; marketing 
techniques for assessing value of new services; 
 
-Staffing:  assessing staffing requirements. 
 
Proposals will be evaluated by SLA's Research Committee 
according to the research topic, methodology, qualifications of 
researchers, proposal presentation, budget and timetable. 
 
Application materials are now available on the SLA website at 
www.sla.org/research/index.html, or via fax from SLA's toll-free 
fax-on-demand system at 1-888-411-2856 (items #1401-1406) or contact Ruth 
M. Arnold, Ph.D. at 1-516-679-3746. 
 
Sincerely, 
 
Ruth M. Arnold, Ph.D. 
Director of Research 
Special Libraries Association 
1700 18th Street NW 
Washington, DC 20009 
Phone: 1-516-679-3746 
E-mail: Ruth[at]sla.org 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
12. LAMA writing competition for LIS students 
 
 
(Sent to SJSU's discussion list by the school's director, Dr. Woolls) 
 
LAMA, a division of ALA is announcing a new award competition for 
students enrolled in accredited library and information studies graduate 
programs. The LAMA/YBP (Yankee Book Publisher) Student Writing and 
Development Award will be presented to the author of the best article on 
technology's impact on leadership. 
 
Deadline: March 31, 1999 
 
The winning article will be published in Fall, 1999 in the LAMA Magazine. 
The award recipient will receive a travel grant up to $1,000 to attend 
the ALA Conference in New Orleans in June, 1999. 
 
You must be a current student member of ALA and LAMA. 
 
What a great opportunity to earn your way to ALA -- 
And, we have an alumna reception there to help you network. 
And, I will help you meet as many important people as I can. 
 
Some of the papers written for our classes would be great foundations for 
a finished paper. Did you do a major paper on the impact of technology on 
something that can be changed into "leadership." 
 
We have the largest MLIS accredited program in the U.S. We need you to 
help us show everyone what good students we really have. 
 
Blanche 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
13. SLA News Division's Vormelker-Thomas Student Award 
 
 
The Vormelker-Thomas Student Award, co-sponsored by the News Division of the 
Special Libraries Association and UMI, offers a $1,500 stipend enabling a 
graduate student interested in news librarianship to attend the 1999 SLA 
annual conference in Minneapolis, Minn. 
 
Selection Criteria: 
1. Applicants must be members of SLA at time of application. 
2. Applicants must be attending their first SLA conference. 
3. Applicants must be graduate students interested in a career in news 
librarianship. 
4. Applications will be judged on the basis of a typewritten essay 
(500-1,000 words) which addresses an issue in news librarianship. 
5. Applications should include a letter of reference from a news librarian, 
a news editor or a faculty member. 
6. Applications should be accompanied by a resume, a list of course work 
undertaken, a statement of professional goals and a statement of what he or 
she expects to gain from attending the conference. 
7. Applications must be submitted no later than February 26, 1999. Mail, fax 
or e-mail applications to: 
 
    Christopher Hardesty 
    San Jose Mercury News Library 
    750 Ridder Park Drive 
    San Jose, CA 95190 
    phone: 408-920-5345 
    fax: 408-271-3799 
    email: chardesty[at]sjmercury.com 
 
The winner will receive a check prior to the conference in June. The 
Division reserves the right not to award the stipend if there are no 
suitable applicants. 
 
 
Xan Barrett  208.433.0802 
Boise, Idaho 83706-7136 
New Librarian 
Graduated August 1998 from University of Arizona's 
School of Information and Related Library Sciences 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
 
14. Sandy Berman's bibliography on Mumia Abu-Jamal, with additions 
 
 
 
Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 16:53:49 -0600 (CST) 
From: Katia Roberto <roberto[at]alexia.lis.uiuc.edu> 
To: CMUNSON <CMUNSON[at]aaas.org> 
cc: librarians[at]tao.ca 
Subject: Re: Re[2]: Report from ALA Midwinter 2 
MIME-Version: 1.0 
Sender: owner-librarians[at]tao.ca 
Precedence: bulk 
Status: U 
 
On Fri, 5 Feb 1999, CMUNSON wrote: 
 
> I'd like to get a copy of Sandy's bibliography so I can put it on my 
> website. 
 
	I live to serve, so here you go. 
 
Abu-Jamal, Mumia. 
Live from Death Row. 
New York: Bard, 1996. 
 
Abu-Jamal, Mumia. 
Death Blossoms: Reflections from a Prisoner of Conscience. 
Farmington, PA: Plough Publishing, 1997. 
 
Anderson, S.E., editor. 
In Defense of Mumia.  New York: Writers and Readers, 1996. 
 
Bedau, Hugo Adam, editor. 
The Death Penalty in America: Current Controversies. 
New York: Oxford University Press, 1997. 
 
Burton-Rose, Daniel, editor. 
The Celling of America: An Inside Look at the U.S. Prison Industry. 
Monroe, ME: Common Courage Press, 1998. 
 
Kennedy, Randall. 
Race, Crime, and the Law. 
New York: Pantheon Books, 1997. 
 
Lethal Selection: Americans Speak Out on the Death Penalty. 
Farmington, PA: Plough Publishing, 1997. 
 
Mello, Michael. 
Dead Wrong: A Death Row Lawyer Speaks Out Against Capital Punishment. 
Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1997. 
 
Palmer, John W. 
Constitutional Rights of Prisoners, 5th ed. 
Cincinnati, OH: Anderson, 1997. 
 
Wicker, Tom. 
A Time to Die. 
New York: Quadrangle/New York Times, 1975. 
 
Williams, Tennessee. 
Not About Nightingales. 
New York: New Directions, 1998. 
 
katia. 
"i like saying things i mean" - harriet the spy 
http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/~roberto 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
Thanks, Katia.  Two more titles of note, both available from AK 
Distribition (http://www.akpress.org): 
 
Abu-Jamal, Mumia. All things censored, Volume 1 (Compact disc). 
Alternative Tentacles/AK Press 1-902593-07-3. 
 
Abu-Jamal, Mumia. Spoken word (Compact disc). Alternative Tentacles 
1-902593-07-3. 
 
I don't know why they're both listed with the same ISBN (they are 
definitely different CDs). 
 
-cd- 
 
Street Librarian 
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Cafe/7423 
 
"Unscrew the locks from the doors! Unscrew the doors themselves from their 
jambs!" --Walt Whitman 
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 
        Chris Dodge                  cdodge[at]sun.hennepin.lib.mn.us 
        Hennepin County Library      phone: 612-694-8572 
        12601 Ridgedale Drive        fax: 612-541-8600 
        Minnetonka, MN  55305 
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
i've got a cd-rom version of this book called "first person : mumia abu-jamal" 
which contains 
- the entire text from the book 
- video interview 
- almost 50 audio commentaries 
- other writings by mumia (indexed by year and title) 
- statements 
- introduction to mumia's life 
 
Voyager - New York, isbn 1-55940-691-7, 1995 
 
Erik 
____________________________________________________________________________ 
__________ e-mail : Erik.Buelinckx[at]uia.ac.be / erikb[at]agoranet.be ___________ 
______________ privÈ tel. : 02/241.28.81 - fax : 02/215.47.33 ______________ 
____ student Informatie-, documentatie-, & bibliotheekwetenschappen UIA ____ 
____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
 
15. SLA forum: THE INTERNET AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF THREE COMMUNITIES 
 
 
The Special Libraries Association, New York Chapter, Social Sciences Group 
is proud to announce an upcoming forum, 
THE INTERNET AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF THREE COMMUNITIES: Visually 
Impaired; Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered; and Urban, Low-Income 
 
* How do different communities use the Internet and how has it changed 
these communities? 
* Has the Internet lived up to its promise as a tool to educate, empower 
and overcome isolation? 
* What is virtual community? How does it relate to traditional communities? 
 
Join us for a provocative forum that will consider the Internet in its most 
real and powerful form--as a means of transformation for individuals and 
their respective communities. 
 
Speakers: 
 
Gregory Rosmaita, American Foundation for the Blind; World Wide Web Consortium 
 
Tim Roberts, Callen-Lorde Community Health Center (New York's only health 
care center primarily serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender 
community) 
 
Liz Cahill, BrookLynX (online community information network and 
Internet/Web publishing training programs serving low-income neighborhoods 
in Brooklyn) 
 
date & time: Wednesday, February 24, 5:30-7:30 p.m. 
(social hour from 5:30 to 6:30) 
 
place: Rockefeller Foundation, 420 Fifth Ave., 23rd Fl., 
betw. 37-38 St. entrance 
 
For more information, contact Monica Berger, Libraries for the Future, 
mberger[at]lff.org, (212) 352-2330. 
 
******************************************************************************* 
 
Please r.s.v.p. by email, fax or mail by February 17 to:  Michele LaBella, 
Catalyst Information Center, 120 Wall Street, 5th Fl., New York, NY 10005. 
Phone: (212) 514-7600, x312, Fax: (212) 514-8470, email: 
mlabella[at]catalystwomen.org 
 
 
Name:__________________________________________________________________________ 
 
Affiliation:___________________________________________________________________ 
 
Phone:_________________ Fax:_________________ Email:________________________ 
 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
16. John Philbrook's false accusation at SFPL, unfortunate aftermath 
 
 
 
Forwarded to SRRTAC-L by Sandy Berman 
.......... 
 
Andrea Grimes wrote: 
 
Dear Salon Editor: 
 
Here's a nightmare of a story set in San Francisco. The truly horrible 
thing about this story is that it is true. I wonder if there might be a 
Salon journalist interested in reporting on it? Many of us working at 
the SFPL have been afraid to speak out or identify ourselves, until very 
recently, because of our real fear of retribution. 
 
In April 1996, shortly after the opening of the New Main Library, my 
colleague, John Philbrook, an openly gay man and a children's librarian 
at the Main Library's Children's Center, was accused of sexual 
molestation. His accuser was a disturbed teenager with a long history of 
lies and false accusations against many other people. Instead of 
conducting an unbiased and independent investigation, David Price, 
formerly special assistant to Ken Dowlin (who himself served as City 
Librarian until his forced resignation in January 1997) and Kathy Page, 
then Chief of the Main Library, denied John Philbrook his right to due 
process. Based wholly on suspicion, innuendo, and displeasure at John's 
outspoken stand on the shortcomings of the New Main Library, they fired 
him from the position he held for eleven years. Throughout John's 
distinguished career at the SFPL, his dedication in bringing quality 
library service to the children of San Francisco, was marked by respect 
and admiration by most of his colleagues, and numerous awards, including 
the Mayor of San Francisco's Award for Outstanding Performance in Public 
Service, commendations from the Board of Supervisors for "vital 
contributions to the life of San Francisco," and the prestigious Daniel 
Koshland Award, presented by the San Francisco Foundation for 
outstanding service to the community. 
 
After John was fired, a highly biased investigation was conducted by 
Inspector Patrick White of the San Francisco Police Department and 
criminal charges were brought against John. For two and one-half years he 
vigorously fought these heinous allegations in court. Finally, on July 
30, 1998, all charges against John were dropped by Judge William Cahill 
for complete lack of evidence. Despite this, the Library Administration 
has not reinstated John. 
 
During John's harrowing ordeal, an overwhelming number of his 
colleagues, friends, family, and library patrons came to his defense, 
and have continued to stand by him. Library staff petitioned the City 
Librarian in support of John, in spite of threats of administrative 
retaliation and efforts to silence us. We continue to support John's 
fight for justice. We have always believed in his integrity and in his 
innocence. On Monday, November 16, 1998, John's lawyer, Gary Hall, 
delivered a two-page press release outlining the history of his client's 
case, to the San Francisco Chronicle, for the purpose of publishing an 
update on the story they ran August 12, 1997, by reporter Henry Lee. To 
date, the Chronicle has chosen not to respond. 
 
Would you be interested in this story? I can send you a packet of 
pertinent documents detailing the case. Please let me know if you're 
interested and send me your mailing address. 
 
Please contact me at your earliest convenience.  I may be reached at 
work (Book Arts & Special Collections, SFPL, Tuesday - Saturday, 
415.557.4572); or, at home (415.922.5869, after 7:00  pm). 
 
Sincerely, 
 
Andrea V. Grimes 
1755 O'Farrell Street #3A 
San Francisco, CA 94115 
email at home: ravictory[at]earthlink.net 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
 
17. Revised Boy Scouts Resolution Passes at ALA Midwinter 
 
 
Mime-Version: 1.0 
Date: Thu, 4 Feb 1999 18:00:13 -0500 
To: plgnet-l[at]listproc.sjsu.edu, librarians[at]tao.ca, srrtac-l[at]ala.org 
From: Mark Rosenzweig <iskra[at]earthlink.net> 
Subject: ALA passes resolution against Boy Scouts of America! 
Reply-To: iskra[at]earthlink.net 
Sender: owner-PLGNet-L[at]listproc.sjsu.edu 
Status: U 
 
A controversial resolution aimed at discriminatory policies of the Boy 
Scouts of America which target gays and atheists for exclusion, policies in 
defense of which the BSA has mounted several major legal proceedings, was 
finally passed by the Council of the American Library asssociation at its 
last session during the Mid-Winter Philadelphia conference, resulting in 
the ALA  at last taking a clear stand against homophobia and religious 
bigotry in an organization with which it has had a long historic 
relationship. 
 
 
The resolution follows: 
 
RESOLUTION ON THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA (revised)  ALA Council Doc 51.A 
 
WHEREAS the American Library Association (ALA) has had a long relationship 
with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA); and 
 
WHEREAS the BSA continues to exclude persons from membership and leadership 
on the basis of religious beliefs and/or sexual orientation: and 
 
WHEREAS ALA policies 54.17 and 60.2 declare the Association's support for 
gay rights and "actively commits [ALA's] prestige and resources" to 
opposing discrimination in several areas including sexual orientation and 
creed: and 
 
WHEREAS ALA policy 1.1 "recognizes [ALA's] broad social responsibilities in 
ameliorating or solving the critical problems of society," among which are 
homophobia and religious intolerance; and 
 
WHEREAS ALA reaafirms the responsibility that librarians have to provide 
library services equitably to all children and young adults regardless of 
their affiliations: therefore be it 
 
RESOLVED that ALA Council urges the Boy Scouts of America to reconsider 
their policy of discrimination in the areas of sexual orientation and 
religious belief and demonstrate a commitment to human rights, 
inclusiveness and mutual respect. 
 
 
submitted by Mark C. Rosenzweig, Councilor-at-large, 
seconded by Ruth Gordon and Elaine Harger, Councilors -at-large 
 
 
It may seem somewhat tepid, but it was quite a struggle to get this passed 
and it does re-affirm ALA's right and duty to speak out against social 
injustice and to address it in practice. It also adds an important 
organizational voice to the chorus of condemnation of the BSA's promotion 
of homophobia and religious sectarianism. 
 
 
Yours in struggle, 
Mark Rosenzweig 
ALA Councilor, 
SRRT Action Council member 
co-editor "Progressive Librarian" 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
 
 
 
18. Remembering Marvin Scilken, Unabashed Librarian 
 
 
 
We were saddened to learn that Marvin Scilken died during the night of 
February 2nd. He had been attending ALA's Midwinter Meeting in 
Philadelphia.  Marvin was the retired director of the Orange (NJ) 
Public Library, long time ALA Councilor, editor and publisher of the 
U*N*A*B*A*S*H*E*D Librarian, and a tireless advocate for the best in 
library service to the public.  The ALA Councilors honored Marvin at 
their Wednesday meeting and adjourned the session in his memory. 
 
Peggy Barber 
Associate Executive Director 
American Library Association 
50 E. Huron Street 
Chicago, IL 60611 
phone: 312-280-3217 
fax: 312-280-4392 
e-mail: pbarber[at]ala.org 
     ................................................................... 
 
 
I posted a tribute to Marvin Scilken to the PUBLIB list, where it is 
archived at: 
 
http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/PubLib/archive/9902/0055.html 
 
I expect other people will post tributes.  These can be read without 
subscribing to the list.  Go to the PUBLIB archive, at: 
 
http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/PubLib/archive.html 
 
or go directly to the archive for February 1999, at: 
 
http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/PubLib/archive/9902/ 
 
The tribute is long, but if there is interest among people who do not have 
web access, I will post it to the Council list.  Again, it would be 
nice--and would enhance our work--to have a web-based archive for our 
Council discussions.  However, it would cost money, time and labor. 
-- 
Karen G. Schneider |  kgs[at]bluehighways.com http://www.bluehighways.com 
Author: A Practical Guide to Internet Filters, Neal Schuman, 1997 
Director, Garfield Library of Brunswick, NY... 
Soon: Brunswick Community Library! 
Garfield on the Web: http://www.crisny.org/not-for-profit/garfield/ 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
 
He was a genuine "unabashed librarian," who sensitized me long ago to 
matters like not accepting mindlessly every new Dewey revision (because of 
the impact on browsability and the integrity of DDC notations) and who in 
his own catalog "broke the code" of mystifying abbreviations & 
hieroglyphics so that users could UNDERSTAND what they found in catalog 
entries (e.g., being much less likely to confound pagination with call 
numbers). I, for one, miss his voice already. sandy berman 
 
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 
        Sanford Berman             sberman[at]sun.hennepin.lib.mn.us 
        Hennepin County Library    phone: 612-694-8570 
        12601 Ridgedale Drive        fax: 612-541-8600 
        Minnetonka, MN  55305 
 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
     ................................................................... 
 
 
 
When Councilor Mitch Freedman eulogized Marvin Scilken at last 
Wednesday's Council meeting, he concluded by singing "Young At Heart." 
That describes Marvin's outlook on life, but the song that I think 
exemplifies what he meant to so many of us is Bette Midler's "Wind 
Beneath My Wings." 
 
For those not familiar with this song, some of the lines are: 
 
Did you ever know that you're my hero? 
You're everything that I'd like to be; 
I could fly higher than an eagle, 
You are the wind beneath my wings. 
 
Marvin Scilken was the wind beneath so many of our wings. I had lunch 
with him and Polly last Monday, and he left me with an assignment for 
the U*N*A*B*A*S*H*E*D L*I*B*R*A*R*I*A*N--to do a piece on the use of 
debit cards and installation of games on public-access workstations.  He 
always urged me to write something for U*L, and reprinted several items 
I had written for local publications or posted to discussion groups. 
 
Someone brought up the question of what's going to happen to U*L.  I 
think that the greatest thing we could do to memorialize Marvin is to 
keep that publication going.  I'm sure Marvin read countless local 
library publications to spread ideas about "How I Run My Library Good." 
It is to be hoped that someone can take a small step to fill his shoes. 
 
-- 
Your friendly CyberGoddess and ALA Councilor, 
Sue Kamm 
Email:  suekamm[at]class.org 
The goal of all employees is to anticipate all problems, develop 
solutions for them, and solve them before they occur. 
HOWEVER... 
When you are up to your ass in alligators, it is difficult to remember 
that your initial objective was to drain the swamp. 
--Anon. 
_____________________________________________________________________________ 
 
 
  L I B R A R Y   J U I C E 
 
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| 
| Except where noted, items appearing in Library Juice 
| are copyright-free, so feel free to share them with 
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