***• Burning the books*** by Richard Ovenden, p225

Libraries support, grow and sustain democracies - book burners are despots who close libraries, democracy and freedoms

Five functions of libraries and archives

(From Burning the books, a history of knowledge under attack by Richard Ovendon, p225)

“Firstly; they support the education of society as a whole and of specific communities within it.

Secondly; they provide a diversity of knowledge and ideas.

Thirdly; they support the well-being of citizens and the principles of the open society through the preservation of key rights and through encouraging integrity in decision-making.

Fourthly; they provide a fixed reference point, allowing truth and falsehood to be judged through transparency, verification, citation and reproducibility

Fifthly; they help root societies in their cultural and historical identities through preserving the written record of those societies and cultures.”

Thank you, Richard Ovenden - you speak truth to power.

Michael