On February 14, the library officials for the Greenwich Library agreed to allow Alison Weir, the founder of If Americans Knew, to proceeded with the two scheduled lectures. The lectures are centered around Israeli-Palestinian relations and some members of the community complained. According to Executive Director Mario Gonzalez, "The library does not normally receive complaints on programs that have been held on its grounds, so when numerous complaints came in on this particular program, the library needed to do due diligence and determine what was in the best interest of the public."
After the initial cancellation of Weir's talks, she insisted that it was her constitutional right to deliver her lectures. After receiving numerous complaints from Weir's supporters, the library sought legal counsel and it was affirmed that "although the library is a private non-profit organization, because the town of Greenwich supplies some of the operating budget, the facility is technically a public institution that cannot discriminate over which groups can hold events there."
Weir hopes that the lectures will be still receive attendees since the library already announced that the program "violated public sensibilities."
I, for one, am glad the library chose to let Weir hold her lectures. Even though the library does not endorse her speeches the library should allow her to be heard. Just because some members of the community disagree with her ideals and viewpoints does not mean the entire community feels that way. By not allowing Weir to talk, the library was basically censoring the issue. If the offended members do not want to hear the talk, don't attend. They have no right to deny the next person entry.
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