A group of bookworms who fear the city will cut funding to the Brooklyn Public Library next year will hold a “read-in” at the Central Branch this weekend to get the word out that it takes green to keep free books flowing.
Participants will read from their favorite literature for 15-minute increments from 4 pm on Saturday to 4 pm on Sunday in hopes of sending a message to Mayor Bloomberg, who is proposing to cut funding to the boroughs book-sharing club by $106 million. Library backers say the 35 percent cut will force the library to slash 1,400 positions.
“We’ve been doing the do-more-with-less thing for a while,” said Lauren Comito, a board member of Urban Librarians Unit, which is organizing the event. “Now it will be doing less with less.”
But the protesters admitted that the mayor’s draconian cuts probably won’t go through, as a deal will be brokered with lawmakers that will minimize the damage.
“The City Council is always wonderful and gets most of it restored,” Comito said. “But still, even $5 million or $6 million adds up after a few years.”
Interested readers can sign up for a slot at the Save New York Libraries at:www.savenyclibraries.com.
Reach reporter Danielle Furfaro at dfurfaro@cnglocal.com or by calling (718) 260-2511. Follow her at twitter.com/DanielleFurfaro.
