American Library Association: Leave Occupy Wall Street Books Alone! (VIDEO)

The American Library Association has denounced the dismantling the Occupy Wall Street Library.

The tent that housed the library, also known as the People's Library, was taken down the morning of Nov. 15.

The ALA noted their longstanding policy of protesting the destruction of any library.

The dissolution of a library is unacceptable, ALA president Molly Raphael said in a statement on Nov. 17. The very existence of the People's Library demonstrates that libraries are an organic part of all communities. Libraries serve the needs of community members and preserve the record of community history. In the case of the People's Library, this included irreplaceable records and material related to the occupation movement and the temporary community that it represented. We support the librarians and volunteers of the Library Working Group as they re-establish the People's Library.

OWS protestors have noted the losses on their Web site and Facebook group. A press conference was held on Thanksgiving. Several books that were damaged in the scuffle, according to OWS protestors, were displayed on a table.

The People's Library was destroyed by NYPD acting on the authority of Mayor Michael Bloomberg on the night of the raid, OWS librarian William Scott said in a statement. In addition to all our supplies, laptops, and tent, they threw roughly 4,000 books into garbage trucks and dumpsters that were adjacent to the park, as well as assorted rare documents that were associated with OWS.

Here is a video from Occupy NYTV's YouTube channel: