Independent Bookstores Celebrate First Amendment With ABFFE Fundraisers

As booksellers ready to celebrate Banned Books Week, which begins on September 20, some are putting money where their love of reading is, by sponsoring fundraisers for the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE). Tattered Cover Bookstore in Denver and Northshire Bookstore in Manchester Center, Vermont, have fundraisers planned for September 20 and September 27, respectively, and in Austin, Texas, BookPeople is currently holding a fundraiser, which started August 14 and runs until Friday, September 12.

"ABFFE is very grateful to the owners and the staff at BookPeople, Tattered Cover, and Northshire," said Chris Finan, president of ABFFE. "Their support is a real shot in the arm."

BookPeople owner Steve Bercu told BTW that he decided to hold a fundraiser simply because "[he] felt like it was a good idea…. We're constantly being barraged with the USA Patriot Act [which gives the FBI vastly expanded authority to search business records, including the records of bookstores and libraries], and I've been following ABFFE very closely. So I decided to help out."

For the fundraiser, BookPeople's Bercu enlisted the help of author Jim Hightower. The fundraiser began on August 14, the day that Hightower's new book, Thieves in High Places (Viking), was published. Hightower mentioned the fundraiser in his newsletter, The Lowdown, explaining that BookPeople would be donating 10 percent of sales to ABFFE, and he encouraged people to participate. Additionally, Hightower will be appearing at the store on September 12. All told, Bercu said, approximately 500 copies have been sold during the fundraiser so far.

Bercu shrugged off notions that this was a completely altruistic effort on his part. "It was helpful to ABFFE, and it was helpful to our store," he said. "It's good for business…. I would recommend that other stores do this."

On Saturday, September 20, at 7:00 p.m., award-winning composer, saxophonist, and author James McBride will help Tattered Cover kick off Banned Books Week with a special event to help raise funds for ABFFE. McBride, whose bestselling novel The Miracle at St. Anna (Riverhead Books) has recently been released in paperback, will discuss the writing process and talk about issues of race and identity, using humorous events from his childhood and his own life as examples. He will accompany himself on the piano during the presentation, playing musical examples of events from his youth. Afterwards, he and his 10-piece band will perform eclectic jazz and R&B. Tickets are $5 and all proceeds will benefit ABFFE.

On September 27, at 3:00 p.m., authors Judy Blume, Richard Russo, Howard Zinn, and ABFFE's Finan will appear at Northshire Bookstore's Celebration of Banned Books Week. Northshire has always believed in the importance of preserving citizens' rights of free expression, and this is a battle made all the more important considering the post-9/11 political climate, noted Zach Marcus, Northshire's marketing director. "It reflects a longstanding commitment of Northshire Bookstore," he said. "The independent bookstore stands for honoring and protecting our rights of free expression. The only censorship that should exist is our choice not to read [a particular book]."

For that reason, Marcus continued, Northshire felt it was fitting to throw a fundraiser for ABFFE during Banned Books Week. "I think ABFFE has become one of the principle outlets for readers, bookstores, and citizens to have their concerns [about censorship] addressed on both a political and social level," he explained. "They have done tremendous work and are an important mouthpiece.

The Northshire Fundraiser will include author presentations, along with a Q&A and discussion, and will be held at First Baptist Church of Manchester. Tickets with a suggested donation of $10 are available at Northshire Bookstore, with proceeds benefiting ABFFE. --David Grogan