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Y Protesters Unbound

Jul
29
posted by Sharon, on July 29, 2009 at 10:19 am

Y Protesters Unbound

Critics of the 92nd Street Y’s decision to close the Buttenwieser Library protested Monday night. They’re likely fighting a losing battle. Michael Datikash

Critics of the 92nd Street Y’s decision to close the Buttenwieser Library protested Monday night. They’re likely fighting a losing battle. Michael Datikash

by Sharon Udasin

Not wanting to close the book on the Buttenwieser Library, a small band of passionate protesters took to the streets Monday night to save their beloved — but perhaps doomed — book room.

“It is so inimical to what the Y stands for, especially as the people of the book,” said Erwin Flaxman, a professor at Columbia University’s Teachers College. 

Flaxman and the other protesters braved on-and-off thunderstorms to hand out about 400 flyers and collect petition signatures from passersby and Y patrons in front of the building at 92nd Street and Lexington Avenue. They’re demanding that the Y keep the library open, or at least postpone its closing. Protesters collected 340 signatures. Continue reading…

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Jewish Education, Jewish Life, Jewish Week, New York City

1 Comment

  1. Friend of the 92Y Library
    11/08/2009

    Supporters of the “Y” library who have not yet added their name to the written or online petition to keep the 92nd St. Y Library open, can do so with a quick click at http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/92ylibrary?e

    92Y executive director Sol Adler has so far not given any indication of flexibility about the dismantling of the Y library, but It’s not too late to attempt to change his mind, by writing him at SAdler@92Y.org. Why not “cc” your letter to Sharon’s blog site, here, and keep the conversation going? You can also join Facebook’s “Save the 92Y Library!”, or listen in and add to the postings at the New York Times, at City Room: At 92nd Street Y, Even Homer Must Bow to Wireless Internet .

    Future generations will be deprived of an irreplaceable gem with the loss of the library – which was open to the public and had a collection of books about jewish history and the jewish experience not easily otherwise found in one place. Its selection of recently published books has always been excellent. Books that are more than a year or two old are of course mostly out of print. The culling necessary to fit the collection into a few reading rooms will destroy the 135 year old library; all seemingly to create office space for positions (PR was mentioned) that should probably be outsourced.

    Buttenwieser is neither irrelevant nor out of date: It has of course wifi and computers. For now, it is still intact, but if the community does not speak out, it will be too late.

    It’s not a lost cause, yet.

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