An edition of Information and Liberation (2008)

Information and Liberation

Writings on the politics of information and librarianship

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Last edited by MARC Bot
November 30, 2023 | History
An edition of Information and Liberation (2008)

Information and Liberation

Writings on the politics of information and librarianship

"A collection of the writings of Shiraz Durrani, British-Kenyan library science professor and political activist"--Provided by publisher.

Publish Date
Language
English
Pages
385

Buy this book

Previews available in: English

Book Details


Table of Contents

To inform is to liberate
Setting the scene (1) : rocking the boat
Veterinary information in Kenya
Lessons in Kenyan librarianship : leadership, management and the library worker
Rural information in Kenya
Agricultural information services in Kenya and third world needs
Libraries, communication & development in Kenya : the missing political factor
Human rights and information in Kenya : a question of political power
The mirage of democracy in Kenya
Independence in Kenya and the lost opportunity
Information relevance, equality, and material security : the Kenyan experience (1998)
Politics of information, information for politics
Setting the scene (2) : a mere librarian doing research
The politics of food
The other Kenya : underground and alternative literature
Information in Kenyan liberation struggle : facts and fiction
Voices of resistance : underground publishing in Kenya, 1963-1998
Setting the scene (3) : no equality of conditions
The search for social justice
Black communities and information workers in search of social justice (1999)
Combating racism in library and information services
Struggle against racial exclusion in public libraries
Equality : a service development approach
Mainstreaming equality, meeting needs
Create a people-orientated public library service
Creating a new library, creating a new library manager
Comments on "new direction in social policy"
The challenge for libraries in a multicultural society
Politics of information and resistance
Capitalism and socialism : has the contradiction been resolved?
Returning a stare : people's struggles for political and social inclusion
The professional is political : redefining the social role of public libraries
The role of the Library Association
Never be silent : launch, Nairobi
Communications for liberation : launch of Never be silent, London
Trade union movement in Kenya & their communications system
Politics of information & knowledge in Africa
Setting the scene (4) : need for active involvement
Three questions from bis
Interview with Shiraz Durrani, 11th May 2004
Breaking the culture of silence
Three questions from bis
Library Association motions on race and class
Comprehensive and efficient : standards for modern public libraries, a response
Progressive librarians & activists campaign to save CRE Library
The educational role of public libraries in combating racism and xenophobia
Incorporating reflective learning in information management
Learning by doing : lifelong learning through innovations projects at DASS
Changing course content to meet changing needs
The facts behind the Three Continents Liberation Collection
The Black and Minority Ethnic Stock Group in Hackney libraries
Young people in control
Quality Leaders Project-Youth : a search for a relevant information service (2005-06)
Progressive librarianship in Africa : the PALIAct story
Quality Leaders Project (Youth) : report 4 to PHF
QLP-Y on a journey of a thousand kilometres
Filling the youth shaped hole
Book reviews. The quiet struggle ; Mother Kenya
Libraries for all : a tool for change?
Stop talking, start doing!
Black perspective on history of libraries : a review article
Review : framework of lost opportunities
Organise, do not agonise.

Edition Notes

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Published in
Duluth, MiN

Classifications

Dewey Decimal Class
020.96762
Library of Congress
ZA3159.K4 D87 2008

The Physical Object

Pagination
p. cm.
Number of pages
385
Dimensions
10 x 7 x inches

ID Numbers

Open Library
OL22569352M
Internet Archive
informationliber0000durr
ISBN 10
1936117274
ISBN 13
9780980200409, 9781936117277
LCCN
2008042284
OCLC/WorldCat
231724510
Goodreads
6349645

Work Description

Information and liberation is a retrospective collection of Shiraz Durrani's articles and conference papers on the politics of information. The book documents the struggle for progressive and relevant information policies and practices over a period of 25 years in Kenya, Britain, and other countries. The book records also the vision, struggles and achievements of many progressive librarians and activists to develop a system and a society which can meet the information, social and cultural needs of all, particularly those marginalised by forces of capitalism and imperialism.

Many standard books on information and librarianship take capitalism and imperialism as a "given" and develop visions of an "information society" within this overall economic and political context. They attempt to resolve issues of equality, exclusion and "information poverty" in isolation of the social, economic and political context in which libraries and information exist.

Durrani's approach differs in that he seeks to link information liberation with active struggles for economic and social justice for all. A theme that runs throughout the book is that the struggle for information equality needs to be waged as part of a struggle against capitalist exploitation of human and natural resources. The theme is based on an assumption that "people have the right to the information they need." The role of librarians and information activists is seen as one of providing relevant information to people as their basic human right. For this to happen, information workers and activists need to be empowered – or to empower themselves – to develop systems that meet the needs of their communities.

In addition to communicating a vision of a society where information is provided as a human right, the book records various innovative projects which put the progressive ideas into practice. It provides a rare record of a process of putting ideas and policies into practice, making available a useful resource for others involved in similar struggles, highlighting possible hurdles and showing the tools that can be used for success.

It is noteworthy that the book records this struggle in Kenya, a country of the South where many of the oppressive policies associated with corporate globalisation were first tried out before being used in Europe, USA and other parts of the world. The experience gained in addressing this stranglehold in Kenya thus has a greater, global significance. The focus of the book then shifts to England where a similar struggle is also recorded – perhaps indicating that the need for a more active and united struggle against capitalism and corporate globalisation is as urgent in the industrialised world as it is in Kenya.

While this "information" struggle is waged wherever there is oppression, few such struggles are recorded from the people's point of view and with the firsthand experience and social commitment that Information and liberation seeks to provide.

Durrani graduated from the University of East Africa in 1968 and got his library qualifications from the University of Wales. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP). He worked at the University of Nairobi Library from 1968 to 1984. Durrani was an active member of the then underground December Twelve Movement in the late 1970s and 1980s. Following the publication of his articles on the history of Kenyan anti-imperialist, liberation struggle in national press, Durrani left Kenya and moved to Britain in September 1984. In Britain he worked at Hackney and Merton public libraries before taking up the post of Senior Lecturer in Information Management in the Department of Applied Social Sciences at the London Metropolitan University.

Durrani's main interest is the politics of information. His book, Never be silent; publishing and imperialism in Kenya, 1884-1963, was published in 2006 (London: Vita Books). His earlier short book, Kimaathi, Mau Mau's first Prime Minister of Kenya (1986, London: Vita Books) remains an important resource for political activists in Kenya today.

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History

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November 30, 2023 Edited by MARC Bot import existing book
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