from: The New Yorker
Book Bench:
Notes on books, publishing, and the literary life.
February 3, 2010
ARE ARCHIVISTS TODAY'S REAL PEACEMAKERS?
Posted by Meredith Blake
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2010/02/are-archivists-todays-real-p\
eacemakers.html
"Politicians, beauty queens, and rock stars all claim they want world peace. But
could the unassuming archivist, more likely to be found buried in a stack of
yellowing newspapers than at a global summit, be the true peacemaker of our
time?"
"That was the prevailing theme at the Scone Foundation's "Archivist of the Year"
awards, held last week at the CUNY Graduate Center: archivists aren't here
merely to perform the dutiful-but-dull task of preservation, but to defend civil
liberties, encourage transparency, and maybe--just maybe--facilitate historical
reconciliation between former enemies. Underscoring the idea of
archivist-as-peacemaker, this year's award was shared by representatives of both
sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: Khader Salameh of the Al-Aqsa Mosque
Library in Jerusalem, and Yehoshua Freundlich of the Israel State Archives."
"David Myers, the director of U.C.L.A.'s Center for Jewish Studies, spoke
gracefully on the evening's subject, saying that "the potential of the archive
is not merely to preserve, but to liberate." ...
Excerpts from the New Yorker / Please excuse any duplication, kw
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Karen Weaver, MLS, Adjunct Faculty, Cataloging & Classification, The iSchool at Drexel University,
Electronic Resources Statistician, Duquesne University, Gumberg Library, Pittsburgh PA email: [log in to unmask]