Vermillion Public Library Proudly Sponsors Cuban Library

On November 18, 2004, the Vermillion Public Library board voted to sponsor and support the Dulce Maria Loynaz Library, an independent (i.e., not-government-run) library in Havana, Cuba. The Loynaz library was one of the institutions that provided access to books censored by Fidel Castro's government. In March 2003, several independent libraries were raided, including the Loynaz library. Hector Palacios was one of 75 political dissidents imprisoned and given a sentence of 25 years, but his wife, Gisela Delgado, is still running the library. VPL is the first library in America to adopt a Cuban library, joining libraries in Paris and Strasbourg, France in the fight against censorship.

To show their support, Vermillion Public Library has sent Spanish-language editions of George Orwell’s 1984, a collection of works by Mark Twain, Tolkien’s The Hobbit and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling, among others. All materials sent to the Loynaz library will be purchased through private donations, and the library staff and board look forward to helping further the pursuit of intellectual freedom in Cuba.

Donations may be sent to:

Vermillion Public Library
c/o: Cuban Library Project
18 Church Street
Vermillion, SD 57069