Instead of shushing, librarians are urging people to shout about New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's proposed $23.2 million funding cut.
"These cuts are potentially worse than the fiscal crisis of the 1970s," spokeswoman Deanna Lee told the New York Post. "If we don't get restoration, we are looking at severe layoffs [as many as 415 staffers] and at having to cut up to 20 hours per week [of accessibility to the public] Six or seven days of service will go down to four or five days a week."
Visitors to the library's website are greeted with a pop-up ad urging visitors to send a protest e-mail.
The site has already generated 1,500 e-mails, and the library hopes at least 22,000 old-fashioned letters will be sent, Lee said..
New York Public Library branches in Manhattan, Bronx and Staten Island are setting up stands with sample letters and encouraging people to write the mayor and the City Council and asking them to reconsider. Stamps are free.
