Floridas Staatsbibliothek und Staatsarchiv

["Klaus Graf" <klaus.graf _at__ geschichte.uni-freiburg.de>]

Hier, aber auch in Netbib (sowie in ARCHIVALIA)war vor
einiger Zeit etwas zur bedrohlichen Lage der
Staatsbibliothek in Florida zu lesen. Nicht besonders
aktuell informiert ist ein Artikel in SPIEGEL ONLINE, der
ganz am Rande auf diese Vorgaenge eingeht, siehe
http://archiv.twoday.net/stories/34472/

Fuer die folgende ausfuehrliche Richtigstellung bin ich Jim
Schnur sehr dankbar!

Klaus Graf

***

Thank you for telling me about the article in Der Spiegel
online. The
  information in the article is a little out-of-date. Here
is the latest
  information:

  During the 2003 legislative session, lawmakers refused to
approve Jeb
  Bush's plan to move the State Library's "circulating
collection" to Nova
  University, a for-profit, private institution in Fort
Lauderdale. There
  were many websites created earlier in the year that
traced Bush's plans,
  including this link through the Florida Library
Association:

  http://www.flalib.org/state_library/state_library.html

  A transcription of the failed plan's agreement appears
at:
  http://www.floridahistory.info/agreement.htm

  Although this plan failed, there is little doubt that
Bush's appointees,
  including the Secretary of State (a former Orlando mayor
named Glenda
  Hood) and the State Librarian (Judith Ring) continue
their efforts to
  purge the State Library of its resources.

  Just recently, Ring fired a longtime chief at the State
Library, sending
  a chilling message to those who work at the institution.
See:

  http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/6052122.htm

  It is clear to the historical, library, archives, and
academic community
  in Florida that threats to historic preservation grants,
library
  funding, the State Library and Archives, and other
cultural institutions
  will continue until substantial leadership changes take
place. Florida,
  a state with 16 million residents, also faces that
challenge that most
  of its residents came from somewhere else. Many of the
people who have
  moved here do not care about Florida's history; they only
care that
  Florida's tax rate remain low, even at the expense of
quality services
  or education.

  About the archives and ballots: In early May, the
Associated Press
  reported that the State Archives will preserve the
ballots from the 2000
  Presidential Election, although one county had already
destroyed theirs.


  Over the last two years, there have been a number of
attempts to obscure
  open access to the government and to government
information in Florida
  (and throughout the United States). Some attempts are
justified in the
  post-September 11 environment as a way to preserve
"national security."
  Thus, the US Department of Justice would rather litigate
to keep records
  closed than to comply with a Freedom of Information Act
request. The
  Patriot Act (and proposed Patriot Act II) has had a
chilling effect as
  well. Another way that access to information has been
limited is
  through reduced hours of service at some libraries and
repositories
  because of budget cutbacks. It is ironic that some
legislators in
  Florida saw nothing wrong with "giving away" a
substantial portion of
  the State Library's circulating collection to a private
school with no
  guarantee of access, yet probably few of them have ever
checked out a
  book from the library.

  As an archivist and teacher of history, I worry that
these attempts to
  dismantle collections and close doors will hinder
scholarship and
  further erode our intellectual heritage. 

  Please feel free to share the concerns of our library
community in
  Florida with your colleagues in Germany and elsewhere.

  JIM


  Jim Schnur
  Assistant Librarian, Special Collections
  Adjunct Instructor of History
  Nelson Poynter Memorial Library, POY 323
  140 Seventh Avenue South
  St. Petersburg, FL 33701-5016
  Voice: 727.553.1094 Fax: 727.553.1196