Banned Books – is censorship by public libraries ever acceptable?

Right now, public libraries are censoring their readers’ choice of books – but is this ever acceptable? With demand from the public for extremist literature in some UK libraries, it is argued that the job of librarians is to defend social cohesion and avoid texts that may offend religious or ethnic minorities. As ever-limited public money pays for books, it is right for librarians to seek to provoke public debate, or should they get on with providing what the public wants?

A panel discussion with Lisa Appignanesi, President of English PEN; Douglas Murray, author of Hate on the State: How British libraries encourage Islamic extremism; Mike Clarke, Head of Camden Libraries; Tony Lacey, Publishing Director at Penguin Books.

Chair: Mike Harris, Public Affairs Manager of Index on Censorship

15 September, 5.30 pm

Free Word Centre
60 Farringdon Road
London EC1R 3GA

Frank Kermode: Palaces of memory

Literary critic Frank Kermode died this week at the age of 90. Writing for Index on Censorship in 2001, he discussed memory and biography

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Holy Man libel case goes to appeal court

Nightmare on Holy Street, Part 2: His Holiness goes to the Court of Appeal. Hardeep Singh reports

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Rwanda: UK-subsidised media repression

Following Rwanda’s election-related crackdown on the independent media, the UK is finally starting to wise up, says Lars Waldorf

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Iraq inquiry stuck in a quagmire

The Chilcot investigation may know the truth about the build up to the war, but it is unable to reveal all, says Chris Ames

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Burmese Arts Festival fundraiser

On 14 July, 87-year-old Burmese author Nan Nyunt Swe died — but his son Zarganar, one of the country’s most popular comedians, was unable to attend his funeral, and may not even have been informed of his death. Zarganar is currently serving a 35-year prison sentence for criticising the government¹s handling of the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis. Not only that, but since 2008 he has been held in a prison so far from his home that it effectively cut him off from contact with his family. Just last month the authorities felt it necessary to forbid his family from travelling the 1500 km to visit him.

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No charge in Ian Tomlinson death

The Crown Prosecution Service has said there is no charge to answer in the case of a newspaper vendor who died during G20 protests in London. Leah Borromeo disagrees

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Sally Laird 1956 – 2010

Former Index on Censorship editor Sally Laird died recently after a long battle with cancer. Here, Robert Chandler appreciates an extraordinary translator and journalist

On 15 July I received this message from Mark Lefanu, the husband of Sally Laird: “This is to convey the sad news that Sally died early this morning after a long and gallant battle against cancer. The last days, in hospital, were peaceful and even beautiful, surrounded as she was by the love and care of doctors and nurses, along with the support of beloved daughter and sweet friends.”

Since 1993 Sally and her family had been living in Denmark. I went there to say goodbye to her just two weeks ago. Sally knew she was dying, and she approached death as she approached life — with courage and humour. Towards the end of May, when I was arranging a date for my visit, she wrote, “We have various guests coming off and on through June, but with little gaps in between — and after that — total emptiness from July onwards when I am supposed to be dead but any brave soul is very wecome to plant a flag in my diary.” I replied that, in that case, I would book my train tickets for early July.

Sally was unusually gifted in many ways, probably in more ways than I know. Whatever she set her mind to — a large portfolio of drawings of a family of bears produced at the age of thirteen, her work as chief editor of Index on Censorship in her late twenties and early thirties, the many reviews on Russia-related books that she wrote for Prospect, the TLS, the Guardian and the Observer — she carried out conscientiously and with imagination. Her translations of Petrushevaksaya and Sorokin are note perfect. And I know no book that presents a more nuanced picture of Soviet literary life in the post-Stalin years than Sally’s Voices of Russian Literature: Interviews with Ten Contemporary Writers (OUP, 1999).

The death of a friend always makes one regret lost opportunities. I regret that we never realized our project of collaborating on translating a selection of Ivan Bunin’s short stories — though it is some consolation that I did, at least, have the opportunity to tell her of my regret. I regret that I did not see Sally more often. I do, however, remember all our meetings clearly, and with joy.

Read Sally Laird’s Index on Censorship article “Hope For Dissenters” from 1987 here