* * * * * * * *
outraged to be informed of this on rivervacation and was compelled to get back on the grid and type up something for my friend bill. it's not nearly enough--
“Nothing gold can stay”—this is particularly evident in NOLA day after day. This
REPOSTING from SOLOLITSERV:
outraged to be informed of this on rivervacation and was compelled to get back on the grid and type up something for my friend bill. it's not nearly enough--
“Nothing gold can stay”—this is particularly evident in NOLA day after day. This
is a comparable sacking to the literary scene of NOLA as your girl
Katrina hitting the city seven years ago. Bill has been a friend and
mentor for many years now. I cannot imagine someone more intrinsically
connected to poetry and the city of New Orleans to lead UNO Press. He
is approachable, fearless, and learned, and this is a devastating loss
to literary LA. Hopefully we at LSU or one of the other nearby
universities will be smart enough to scoop Bill up and provide him with
the resources he needs to keep LA unpretentiously pertinent and
publishing the poetry emanating from the state and elsewhere with gusto
for the people (readers and writers) not the pedigree. All it should
take is one look at the UNO table (the titles, authors, and camaraderie)
during AWP to note what Bill has achieved on the national scale.
BRING BACK BILL!!!!
VINCENT CELLUCCI
* * * * * * * *
Dear Friends,
Today
the news from the New Orleans poetry community is very, very bad.
Poet
BILL LAVENDER, director of University of New Orleans Press has been
SACKED by the administrators at University of New Orleans.
Bill
Lavender not only resurrected UNO Press, but
under Bill's stewardship these past four years, UNO
press has published an astounding 80+ excellent books nationally and
internationally; and the press is by no means strapped for funding. UNO Press
is currently regarded as one of the most prestigious
and financially self-sustainable university presses in all
of the United States.
Be
assured, this so-called "elimination" is purely POLITICALLY
motivated, not otherwise.
Dean Susan
Krantz of the University of New Orleans informed Bill Lavender of his
"elimination" recently via email while Bill was still in
Scotland fulfilling his duties as Director of UNO's Abroad Program.
IN THE
NAME OF POETRY, please...
Stand
with US!
SPEAK
out!
Let
them hear your VOICE loud and clear!
Pressure
is mounting from all sectors near and far to EXPOSE the corruption
and unethical conduct at the University of New Orleans at the very highest
levels!
Bill
Lavender's so-called "ELIMINATION" is a devastating
blow which will be felt deeply by poetry communities everywhere--
from New Orleans to New York to California to Brazil
to Zimbabwe--and everywhere in between!
Let higher
ed charlatans know you DETEST of their actions!
INFORM fatcat
administrators that their professed soulessness toward POETRY is
indeed a high act of treason to the art we LOVE!
They
must answer for this singular INJUSTICE to POETRY and to poet
Bill Lavender!
We
need every nano of LOVE and SUPPORT you can give!
YOUR
voice will be LEGION!
TURNABOUT!
Love,
Strength & Peace Through Poetry Always!
Sincerest
Regards,
Andrei
Codrescu and Dave Brinks
* * * *
* * * *
Dear Friends: This just in from
Andrei Codrescu:
Andrei Codrescu thinks that Bill Lavender's firing is a disgrace, but the text sent out by Dr.(Dave Brinks) Sleepadelic @aol.com is, in my opinion, over the top. UNO is bad, but what I really hate is Iran's nuclear program. Andrei Codrescu
Andrei Codrescu thinks that Bill Lavender's firing is a disgrace, but the text sent out by Dr.(Dave Brinks) Sleepadelic @aol.com is, in my opinion, over the top. UNO is bad, but what I really hate is Iran's nuclear program. Andrei Codrescu
* * * * * * * *
Please
send a personal letter of objection to ALL email addresses listed:
University
of New Orleans Provost Louis Paradise: lparadis@uno.edu
University
of New Orleans President Peter Fos: pfos@uno.edu
University
of New Orleans, College of Liberal Arts, Dean Susan Krantz: skrantz@uno.edu
University
of New Orleans, Director of Creative fbarton@uno.edu
* * * * * * * *
* * * * * * * *
Sign
Petition site:
https://www.change.org/petitions/uno-president-peter-fos-provost-louis-paradise-and-dean-susan-krantz-keep-bill-lavender-as-the-director-of-uno-press-4
(You may have to copy and paste the above address into the appropriate place, unable to get hot-link to work.)
* * * * * * * *
https://www.change.org/petitions/uno-president-peter-fos-provost-louis-paradise-and-dean-susan-krantz-keep-bill-lavender-as-the-director-of-uno-press-4
(You may have to copy and paste the above address into the appropriate place, unable to get hot-link to work.)
* * * * * * * *
Links
to media reports covering this outrageous act (please post your
personal comments to articles):
Inside
Higher Education story: http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2012/08/07/u-new-orleans-says-press-hiatus-will-be-brief
Poetry Foundation story: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2012/08/university-of-new-orleans-press-on-hiatus/#.UCKiEZ-N5Fk.facebook
Publisher's Weekly story: http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/53459-uno-press-is-shut-down-director-bill-lavender-ousted.html
Times-Picayune story:
http://www.nola.com/books/index.ssf/2012/08/furor_over_shuttered_uno_press.html
The
CHRONICLE of Higher Education story: http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/director-of-u-of-new-orleans-press-loses-job-amid-budget-cuts/46549
Another
story from Publisher's
Weekly: http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/53474-with-director-s-ouster-uno-press-faces-uncertain-future-.html
Another
story from Inside Higher
Education: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2012/08/06/university-new-orleans-plans-put-university-press-hiatus
[NOTE:
If you tweet, post and use hashtag #UNOpress to get these articles trending]
[NOTE:
if you're on FB, check posts there]
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