When the Cuban government tried to silence free voices and stifle unapproved reading in 2003
when they arrested 75 non-violent citizens, most of the world responded with condemnation.
Journalists around the world spoke up for imprisioned independent journalists; diplomats and
governments spoke up for jailed human rights activists, writers and artists spoke out for free
speech, and human rights groups called for an immediate release of the prisoners of conscience.

Now librarians and teachers are adding their voices in a new way. When whole, private book collections are stolen from homes, the lists of patrons are stolen by the secret police, and then thousands of itmes are ordered "incinerated" by Cuban courts, this becomes a human rights
issue for librarians and teachers to address. 

Many people know about the way the Cuban government has tried to repress the
growing demand for democratization in Cuba, but many have never read the news of how
Castro ordered so many books and "subversive" materials burned, as though the books
were heretics in his paradise. This site, then, is an attempt to bring these crimes
to the attention of high school and college students, as well as the reading public, in order
to provide them with the resources by which they can answer the question "Porque?" (Why)

Will These Books Burn Next?

It is also a testimony to the courage of the independent librarians of Cuba, who are showing the
world that the freedom to read is worth going to jail for. It is our small attempt to honor those in Cuba,
and elsewhere, who read and write "dangerous" books, even when those who think they hold all the power say "NO, you must only read the approved books."

In Cuba, sadly, there is no independent court system, no private advocacy groups like the ACLU,
no free library associations, and no network of blogs and independent newspapers with which
to fight the actions of those in power. The fact that many books were burned by court order, however,
may turn out to be good news in the end. It shows what frantic efforts the dictatorship of Castro is willing
to go to in order to try and stop the spread of independent action, and thinking and speach. If the citizens
of Cuba were not in the process of making their voices heard, and choosing their own reading lists,
then the Communist Party would not have to worry about stopping, what in the end, it cannot stop.

Celebrate Liberty:
  Read A Burned Book Today.

Is it a coincidence that North Korea glorifies book burning in their propaganda
and that Fidel and Korean leaders are such close friends?