mdoneil writes “Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Laureate, filed suit against the US in an effort to have her memoirs published in the States.
Ebadi, a 2003 Nobel Peace prize winner who was lauded by President Bush for her committment to democracy and freedom is forced to sue because of restrictions that bar publishing authors from Iran (as well as Cuba and Sudan – countries under US trade sanctions) that have not been previously published without American assistance.
Ms. Ebadi wishes to publish in the United States first because publishing in Iran would require approval of the government.
No matter who wins the election these rules impose an undue burden on these authors and restrict the freedom we enjoy to publish our thoughts to those within our borders. Let our new or returning elected officials know how you feel about the freedom of ideas. Let the ALA know they should be involved in this issue, it is more important than showing some partisan movie.
More info available in the AP article“
purpose?
Is the goal to make money or get the word out? I find it hard to believe this can’t be done through a vanity press, or even published in another country outside of Iran or the U.S.
If she really believes in what she’s doing then put it on the web for free.
better yet
Since she might actually want to make a living in her chosen profession, publish it in one of the Canadian branches of an American owned publishing company (hmm, that would be…most of them). Then ship it across the border.
And heck, while she’s here, she could pick herself up some Cuban cigars, too… 😉
s/
Re:purpose?
Surely if she were to publish on a vanity press, she’d run into the same problem?
Also, should it make a difference what her aims are? Assuming she wants to make money, what’s wrong with that? Doesn’t she have the right to earn income from her intellectual property, assuming someone wants to pay her for it? And doesn’t it potentially hurt Americans to be denied access to the writings of any author?
Re:purpose?
There’s nothing wrong with making money. There’s nothing wrong making money while doing something you believe in. But if it ever comes down to a choice between the two you should go with what you believe in.
If she really wanted to make someting of this she should have tried to publish it in Iran. When they veto it, print it anyway and give it out for free. Where’s she going to get the money to print? Setup a donation site and *I’ll* donate to it.
Just this once put the onus on the country responsible for the problem (Iran) instead of making the U.S. have to waste time making exceptions for legitimate rules.