The presence of five copies of Golbarg Bashi’s alphabet book “P is for Palestine,” which has a page on “I is for Intifada,” at the Baltimore County Public Library is drawing criticism from local Jews.
One of the copies is at the system’s branch in Pikesville, Md., which is home to a large Orthodox Jewish community.
Shelly Hettleman, a Maryland state senator, stated on Feb. 11 that she believes that “our library system is fantastic and should host a wide variety of books and materials.”
“I do not support book bans. When I learned about this children’s book, I shared my concerns with board members that the term mentioned below is interpreted as advocating violence by the vast majority of the Jewish community,” she stated. “I don’t pretend to speak for the entire community, so I will speak for myself by sharing my concerns with BCPL.”
The state senator shared a screenshot of the “I” page, which stated that “Intifada is Arabic for rising up for what is right, if you are a kid or a grownup.”
Aviva Rosenberg, a youth services librarian in New Jersey, told JNS that the “Pikesville library does a lot to support the Jewish community directly, and for people to come and treat them like terror supporters is unconscionable.”
“The same standards that allow books like this allow books about Israel to be included in their collections,” she said, noting that the library’s policy includes “presenting a variety of topics and viewpoints, even ones that are not commonly accepted.”
The Baltimore library “has a significant number of kids’ books about Israel” and often holds activities at times when public schools are in session, but Jewish schools are closed for holidays or vacation, she told JNS. “They do not deserve an outpouring of rage over this book.”
“It’s OK not to agree with every book in the library, to not want to read every book in the library,” she said. “The beauty of public libraries is that they have something for everyone, while accepting the fact that nothing is for everyone.”
