Citizens Defending Libraries, the group headed by long time Brooklyn Heights resident Michael D.D. White was quite vocal at Thursday’s annual Brooklyn Heights Association meeting. When BHA president Alexandra Bowie talked about the group’s stance on the Brooklyn Heights library, White and company hissed their disagreement (no, White didn’t go to Harvard). Oh, and they waved handmade signs in anger after feeling slighted when each and every (?) of their written queries were not addressed during question time.
library be like yelling and stuff #shirknado #brooklynheights pic.twitter.com/LC8JDsfnsM
— brooklynheightsblog (@bkheightsblog) February 28, 2014
Brooklyn Paper: “If the BHA stood up against this plan it would be dead,” said Michael White, a 25-year Heights Association member and co-founder of Citizens Defending Libraries.
The outburst came during a question-and-answer session with audience members near the end of the meeting. Attendees had been asked to write their questions on note cards prior to the meeting, and when the bookworms realized their questions were being skipped over, things got heated.
“I would like my question addressed,” shouted Justine Swartz, another member of the group.
“@WhiteMdd: BHA meeting: Prez Alexandra Bowie recognizes Citizens Defending Libraries from lectern.” #shirknado
— brooklynheightsblog (@bkheightsblog) February 28, 2014
library people doing heir hissing act – this is why we can't have nice things #brooklynheights #shirknado
— brooklynheightsblog (@bkheightsblog) February 28, 2014
Why? pic.twitter.com/iuCqSY28P2
— Michael D. D. White (@WhiteMdd) February 28, 2014
Why? pic.twitter.com/Q8NNWXqcMz
— Michael D. D. White (@WhiteMdd) February 28, 2014
why are we not upset about libraries selling books — is that a thing? #brooklynheights #shirknado
— brooklynheightsblog (@bkheightsblog) February 28, 2014
Last week was a busy time for Citizens Defending Libraries, on Wednesday the group posted this missive (with video) after reportedly being kicked off the Brooklyn Public Library’s bus to Albany:
Today the Brooklyn Public Library chartered a 54-seat bus to bring library advocates to Albany to convince legislators to fully fund the public library system. But BPL specifically *excluded* individuals who oppose its plans to sell off and/or shrink valuable library properties in developer-driven real-estate boondoggles — a policy that NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio has lambasted.
Citizens Defending Libraries co-founders Carolyn McIntyre and Michael D.D. White met the bus across the street from the historic Pacific Library — after discovering at the last minute that the original pickup location in front of the Brooklyn Heights Library had been changed “due to security” reasons.
Fittingly, *both* of these libraries are threatened by the very BPL development plans that library advocates are forbidden to question in Albany today.
In fact, BPL had originally put out a public invitation to *anyone* who wanted to join the lobbying bus, but apparently backtracked when it realized it could not control its message.
Naturally, BPL’s government relations and advocacy manager — who was running the trip today — called NYPD as soon McIntyre and White appeared on the scene — to make sure they stayed off the bus.
It appeared that most (if not all) of the passengers on the charter — filling less than half its taxpayer-funded seats — were actually BPL employees.
McIntyre and White gave them a clear message to bring to legislators: support full funding so that the BPL administration has no excuse to sell off library buildings.
