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Dear Harry or whoever,
I thought this item from my union (the National Writers Union) might be
of interest for the Chiapas95 list.
Bill Pietz
Office of the Americas
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Wed, 10 Mar 1999 14:25:07 -0800 (PST)
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 14:25:07 -0800 (PST)
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To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
From: Christopher Zic <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: URGENT ACTION NEEDED
URGENT
Dear Member:
Please act TODAY to protest a blatant act of political censorship. William
Ivey, the chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, has canceled an
NEA grant for a children's book entitled "The Story of Colors." The book was
written by Subcomandante Marcos, the leader of the Zapatistas of southern
Mexico. Ivey claims that his decision came, according to The New York Times
because he was worried that funds from the grant might end up in the hands
of the Zapatistas. In fact, the publisher, Cinco Puntos Press, had made
clear in its grant proposal-approved at all levels of the NEA-that no part
of the grant would go to the author.
The NWU considers this to be a dangerous attack on freedom of expression. We
would protest this action no matter what political stripe a book seemed to
advocate.
Attached are a press release and letter to Ivey. Call, fax or e-mail Ivey
TODAY (the e-mail is for Ivey's executive secretary)!!! Please send us
copies of letters or e-mails.
Telephone: 202-682-5570
Fax: 202-682-5639
E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Thanks
Jonathan Tasini
President
=============================================================================
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jonathan Tasini, 212-254-0279
Writers Union Protests NEA Grant Cancellation of Controversial Book
New York, March 10-The National Writers Union strongly condemned a decision
by the chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts to cancel a grant for
a controversial children's book.
The National Writers Union, the nation's trade union of 5000 freelance
writers and an affiliate of the United Auto Workers, has called upon the
agency's chairman William Ivey to reverse his abrupt cancellation of an
already approved $15,000 grant to a small El Paso publisher, Cinco Puntos
Press. The grant was given to help the press print a bilingual edition of a
children's book written by former university professor Rafael Sebastian
Guillen Vicente, the masked pipe-smoking "Subcomandante Marcos" of the
Zapatista movement of southern Mexico.
"Chairman Ivey's cancellation is a threat to freedoms all Americans
cherish-freedom of expression and our democratic process of decision
making," said Jonathan Tasini, president of the National Writers Union.
"Ivey has damaged the NEA's reputation. He must immediately return to
democratic process and the principles which the NEA was set up to preserve
and protect." Tasini added that the grant had gone through NEA's normal
year-long approval process, including review by a board that includes six
federal lawmakers. All NEA funds were to go to the publisher for printing
and graphic expenses and none to the Zapatistas.
"Chairman Ivey claims his decision was based on fears that the Zapatistas
would get NEA money," Tasini said. "It appears to us Ivey fears reactions
from NEA critics in Congress who have attacked the very mission of the NEA
for many years. His decision is not based on the facts or on respect for the
NEA's own approval process. We call upon him to immediately reverse his
decision and to protect the arts, help the NEA stand above politics, and
defend the freedoms we all cherish."
The illustrated children's book, "The Story of Colors," was originally
published in Spanish
in Mexico in 1997. Its message of tolerance of differences in colors and
ideas, conveyed through a
Mayan elder's folk tale of how the gods gave the world colors and pinned
them on the tailfeathers
of the macaw parrot to remind people of how many different colors there are,
has won praise on
both sides of the border. The book carries an endorsement by Amy Ray of the
Grammy Award-winning American song duo, The Indigo Girls.
"The NEA should be about artistic freedom of expression, not censorship or
political correctness.
Caving in to political fears is a perversion of the NEA's mission," Tasini
said.
==============================================March 10, 1999
William J. Ivey
Chairman
National Endowment for the Arts
VIA FAX
Dear Mr. Ivey:
The NWU strongly protests your decision to cancel the NEA grant for the
publication of The Story of Colors. This book was approved through the
normal NEA process. Your claim that the royalties may support the Zapatista
cause is entirely unsubstantiated. In fact, quite the contrary, the Cinco
Puntos Press appears to have adhered to its grant proposal, in which it
explicitly said no money would be given to the author, Subcomandante Marcos.
Therefore, your action can only be viewed as a step taken to appease
potential critics of the NEA.
Since the National Council of the Arts, which includes six members of
Congress, approved this grant as part of the normal review process, it is
improper for you to decide unilaterally that it is "an inappropriate use of
Government funds." The NEA's mandate is to promote the arts; that means
promoting freedom of expression. When the government allocates money for
the arts on the basis of the content of the material, or, worse yet, the
author, we are in danger of drowning out the voices of dissent. Moreover,
once a grant is given to a project, the government shouldn't be
investigating how the author of a creative work uses remuneration derived
from an approved grant. Your action has wounded the integrity of the NEA.
We demand the immediate restoration of the grant to the Cinco Puntos Press.
We strongly urge you to respect the review process established by your own
agency. In reversing your decision, you will, moreover, help maintain the
free marketplace of ideas, which is the cornerstone of a free and open
society.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Tasini
President
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