The Newest Trend: Close the Libraries
Posted: December 27th, 2004, 3:47 pm
SALINAS, Calif. — At John Steinbeck Library, third-grader Marilu Quiroz reads to her father, Rafael, though he doesn't understand English. At another table, Marilu's sister Guadalupe reads to their mother, Celina. She doesn't understand either. What the Mexican immigrant parents do understand is that literacy in their adopted country's language is crucial to a brighter future for their three girls. It's why the Quirozes were so dismayed when they heard that the city plans to close the public libraries.
For such a drastic move —— unprecedented in the USA, the American Library Association says —— to blot the hometown of one of the 20th century's greatest literary figures, a writer who chronicled the fictional struggles of earlier immigrant generations, is a bitter pill here.
For such a drastic move —— unprecedented in the USA, the American Library Association says —— to blot the hometown of one of the 20th century's greatest literary figures, a writer who chronicled the fictional struggles of earlier immigrant generations, is a bitter pill here.