King Library to Host
Human Rights Film Viewing &
Discussion in Support of "The September Project"
Community Invited to Join a Conversation on How
Human Rights Issues
Affect Our Views on Democracy, Citizenship and Patriotism
 September
1, 2004 -
On Saturday, September 11, from 1 to 4pm, the Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr. Library, located at 150 E. San Fernando St., will host
a free film viewing and discussion - Patriot Day 9*11*04
A Community Conversation - in support of “The September
Project.” The September Project is a collection of people,
groups, and organizations coming together in public places like
local libraries and working to create a day of engagement, a day
of conversation, a day of democracy. Through talks, roundtables,
and performances, people will share ideas about democracy, citizenship,
and patriotism. San José City Councilmember Cindy Chavez
will make opening remarks and volunteers from the Registrar of
Voters will be on hand to assist with voter registration and demonstrate
use of the new electronic ballot machine.
Saturday’s event kicks off a larger film series of human
rights themed documentaries entitled "The
Human Rights Video Project”. The King Library is one
of 300 libraries nationwide selected to participate in the program
organized by National Video Resources in partnership with the
American Library Association (ALA). The Human Rights Video Project
is supported by a major grant from the John D. and Catherine T.
MacArthur Foundation and the Ford Foundation.
"The
Human Rights Video Project" aims to increase the public's
understanding of the meaning of human rights on an international
as well as domestic level. The film selected for viewing on September
11 is Face to Face. It features first person accounts
of both Japanese-Americans who were impacted by Pearl Harbor,
and Middle-Eastern citizens of the U.S. and their experiences
as a result of 9/11. A full list of scheduled films concludes
this release. In the year following the conclusion of this series,
the videos will be made available for borrowing by local human
rights, advocacy and educational institutions for use in film
screenings, discussion programs and classroom use.
"We are delighted to have been chosen as one of the libraries
to offer this unique documentary film series focusing on some
of the most challenging topics facing world citizens today,"
said Ned Himmel, assistant library director of San José
Public Library. "This program allows community members to
use in-depth information from documentaries as the basis for discussion
on human rights issues. A public library is the perfect backdrop
for this discussion because we can offer a full selection of resources
for further study of any of these topics."
Additional Information:
For more information, contact:
• Lorraine Oback, San José Public Library, at (408)
808-2176
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