Censorship</h1> <article> <h1>Censorship</h1> <p>Wed, 16 Jan 2008 13:50:33 +0100</p> <a href="http://www.babelfruit.org/BABEL_FRUIT/Blog/Entries/2008/1/16_Censorship_1_files/droppedImage.jpg"></a>Assassination is the extreme form of censorship. <br/>~George Bernard Shaw<br/><br/>A word regarding censorship:<br/><br/>For some writers, censorship isn’t only a matter of being formally barred from publishing (on anyone’s bill); they are arrested for passing out handwritten poems on the street corner. They are tortured for not surrendering manuscripts to authorities for approval. They are shot in their homes. <br/><br/>On more than one occasion we received submissions from US and European writers who explain how they have been censored by publishers. We understand, and experience ourselves, the frustration caused by an overflowing shoebox of rejection notes. But forcing publishers to print specific texts is also an infringement of human rights. While everyone has a right to speak, no one can be forced to support specific opinions or forms of artistic expression.<br/><br/>Frustrated as we are, the vast majority of us are not censored. We have access to the means to disseminate our work without being persecuted by authorities. We encourage writers everywhere celebrate their right to free speech, to make use of the world wide web and free publishing solutions such as blogs. There are also low cost publishing methods such as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Print_on_demand">Print on Demand</a>. It is possible for individuals to purchase <a href="http://www.fonerbooks.com/2005/07/how-to-obtain-isbn-number_05.html">ISBN numbers</a> for registration purposes and there are several methods for <a href="http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1.html">copyrighting</a> your work. <br/><br/>You have the right to speak out. <br/><br/>Promoting freedom of expression is doing what we can to tear down the barriers so voices can be heard. If a government is interfering with a writer’s blog or confiscating his or her self-published books, it is our duty to exercise our freedom of speech by protesting, reading, translating and writing.<br/><br/><br/>*Babel Fruit is an edited journal, adhering to a particular style and theme. As a private organization located in Europe, we certainly do not have the power to censor writers, though we often choose not to publish them.<br/><br/>See <a href="http://www.hungersite.com/">ARTICLE 19</a> for more information.<br/><br/><br/> </article> </main></body></html>