ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 172 / C & R L N ew s A m e r ic a n U n iv e r s ity o f B e ir u t B y S a m u e l F u s t u k j ia n D irector o f th e L ib ra ry A m e ric a n U niversity o f B eiru t How an academic library functions in war-ravaged Lebanon. T h e land m a y vary more; B u t w h erev er the tr u th m a y be T h e w a te r com es ashore, A n d th e p eople look at th e sea. — R o b ert F rost, N e ith e r O u t Far N or In D eep jA lm e ric a n U niversity of B eirut L ib ra ry w ith its four b ran ch es is one of th e m ost distinguished in any A rab n a tio n . I t w as fo u n d e d in 1866, th e sam e y ear as th e university. I t has passed th ro u g h a series of d ev elo p m en tal phases a n d to d a y contains n early 450,000 volum es, 1 m illion m icro fo rm pieces, an d 4,200 p erio d ical titles d istrib u te d am o n g th e m ain , m ed ical, scien c e/ag ricu ltu re, a n d en g in e e rin g /a r ­ c h ite c tu re libraries. In a d d itio n to its size, h o w ev er, th e lib ra ry is ac­ claim ed for th e u n iq u e c h a ra c te r an d q u a lity of its collections. T h e book collection has been devel­ oped to do m o re th a n just su p p o rt th e academ ic p ro g ra m s of th e university. To e n h a n ce th e u n iv e r­ sity’s u n iq u e role as a c e n te r for M iddle E a ste rn studies, th e lib ra ry ’s collection reflects a n d c h ro n i­ cles th e h isto rical, p o litical, a n d c u ltu ra l interests of th e co m m u n ity . E nglish a n d A rabic are th e p r i­ m a r y la n g u a g e s o f t h e c o l l e c t i o n . H o w e v e r , F ren c h , A rm e n ia n , T u rk ish , R ussian, a n d G e rm a n titles form a su b sta n tia l p a r t, reflectin g th e linguis­ tic a n d historical diversity of th e region. A m e ric a n U n iv e rs ity of B e iru t L ib r a r y also presents a m osaic of exceptional special collections. Its extensive collection of A rabic m an u scrip ts is u n ­ rivaled. Its arch iv al collection, ch ro n iclin g th e his­ to ry of th e U niversity, contains n u m ero u s diaries of A m erican m issionaries w h o w o rk ed an d trav e le d in L eb a n o n an d o th e r p a rts of th e M iddle E ast. T he collection of p h o to g rap h s d ep ictin g scenes of L e b a ­ non an d th e M iddle E ast as seen th ro u g h th e eyes an d lenses of such artists as Bonfils, D u m as, and S arafian is u n m a tc h e d in q u a lity , uniqueness, and historicity. My first reactio n w h en en te rin g AUB’s w alled cam pus w as th a t of su rp rise— surprise a t th e shock­ ing difference b etw een th e cam pus an d th e ra v ­ aged m etro p o lis s u rro u n d in g it. As th e l a tte r is noisy, destroyed, an d filthy, so is th e fo rm e r q u iet, clean, u n to u ch ed , an d b e a u tifu l. T h e 73-acre c a m ­ p u s w ith its tile -ro o fe d b u ild in g s , la n d s c a p e d grounds, tennis courts, an d m ag n ificen t b each is a vivid re m in d e r of w h a t B eirut used to be. In spite of th e shellings th a t th e cam pus received d u rin g S eptem ber 1983 an d F e b ru a ry 1984, AUB has survived th e ten -y ear-o ld w a r m ostly in ta c t. I r ­ respective of its geographical location, AUB is con­ sidered by all factions as too v alu a b le an asset to h a rm or destroy. All th e political an d religious p a r ­ ties of L e b a n o n h av e m e m b e rs w h o g ra d u a te d from AUB. C onsequently AUB co m m an d s consid­ erab le love an d affection am o n g th e L ebanese p o p ­ ulation. In view of this fa ct, AUB has stayed o u t of th e massive L ebanese conflict. H ow ever, th e reverse has not been tru e . To say th a t th e effect of th e con­ flict u p o n th e cam p u s, its staff, stu d en ts, an d li­ A p ril 1984 / 173 b ra ry has been p ro fo u n d w o u ld be an u n d e rs ta te ­ m en t. E ffo rts h av e been m a d e to keep life in th e city a n d w o rk on cam p u s sep a rate. H ow ever, this v a lia n t struggle to keep th e w a r outside th e u n iv e r­ sity a n d th e lib ra ry w alls fre q u e n tly fails. T h e c on ­ s ta n t shelling is too close to ignore. T h e lib ra ry staff m ay b e stoic, b u t th ey a re d em o ra lize d a n d deeply resent this co n sta n t in tru sio n in to th e ir efforts to lead n o rm a l lives. T h e ev en ts th a t h av e tak en p lace in th e lib ra ry d u rin g th e p ast te n years, th o u g h n o t u n iq u e , are q u ite p h e n o m e n a l. W h e n ev er you h av e 80 people w o rk in g to g e th e r all d ay long in one lo catio n , te n ­ sion is expected. At th e lib ra ry , h o w ev er, w h e re th e d aily a n d incessant tu rm o il of th e outside infringes u p o n th e w o rk p lace, th e consequences of this te n ­ sion in te n sify d ra stic a lly . A sense of im p e n d in g doom clashes an d coexists w ith th e d e te rm in a tio n to survive a n d grow . This a m a lg a m a tio n of con­ flictin g desires m anifests itself in increased profes­ sional self-expectations, in telle ctu al com placency, a n d ideological p ru d e n ce. In its sim plest fo rm , this conflict is seen in th e li­ b r a r y ’s efforts to a u to m a te . P lans to establish a te le ­ c o m m u n icatio n s link w ith th e U.S. a re th w a r te d by th e fa c t th a t m ost phones d o n ’t w o rk , a n d those th a t do a re fre q u e n tly ta p p e d . T h u s, to do n o th in g becom es th e p ru d e n t th in g . M oslems, C h ristian s, a n d D ru z e w o rk to g eth er in th e sam e b u ild in g , using g re at ca u tio n to keep politics o u t of th e ir conversation. T hey m a in ta in a th in veneer of re stra in t am o n g them selves, w h ile outside m em bers of th e ir respective com m unities b o m b a n d kill each o th er. This continuous a w a re ­ ness som etim es raises th e tension inside th e lib ra ry alm ost to th e b re ak in g p o in t. O n e w o n d ers, h o w ­ ever, if th e re w ill com e a tim e w h e n this veneer w ill s h a tte r a n d th e lib ra ry w ill becom e an a re n a of hos­ tility a n d violence, p a ra lle l to th a t going on in th e city a n d th e co u n try . P o c k e t-siz e d ra d io s h a v e b e c o m e a s t a n d a r d piece of e q u ip m e n t w ith in m ost lib ra ry d e p a r t­ m ents. D iffe re n t b ro a d c a st stations a le rt listeners to w h ich roads a re safe to trav e l a n d w h ich areas h av e been shelled. T hose w ho belong to a group o th e r th a n th e m a jo rity in th e ir d e p a rtm e n t te n d to h av e th e ir o w n ra d io a n d listen to a statio n th a t th ey believe in. In L e b a n o n , any tru th s th a t are b ro a d c a st are p a rtis a n tru th s. I t is a fatalistic p a n ­ tom im e: every h o u r on th e h o u r, all heads low er, ra d io s t u r n on, a n d faces assum e expressions of grim ex p ectatio n . W h e n th e new scast is over, li­ b ra ry staff m ak e a v a lia n t effort to go on w ith th e ir w o rk a n d do th e ir best. T hey do this d a y in a n d d ay o u t , h o p i n g a n d w a i t i n g , a lo n e in a c r o w d , a n d .. .listening to th e radio. In spite of th e adverse effect th a t te n years of fig h tin g h ave h a d on th e university a n d its lib ra ry , it is su rp risin g how w ell th e ir basic services h ave fu n c tio n ed . In a la n d w h e re te n years of chaos h ave been th e ru le, th e lib ra ry has m a in ta in e d a g re at degree of efficiency a n d d ed ica tio n to its users. S ep tem b er 1983 w as th e m o n th d u rin g w h ich w e h a d p la n n e d to c o n d u c t an in v en to ry . N o rm ally , inventories a re tedious a n d considered necessary evils a t best. H o w e v e r, a t AUB w e used it as a m eans of m a in ta in in g a sense of n o rm alcy , an d th a t fa ct m a d e it one of th e m ost significant events of th e year. W e suspected th a t th e re w ere a g re at m a n y losses d u e to th e y ears o f w a r , as w ell as The inventory started when the shelling was at its worst. g re a te r losses left u n a c c o u n te d for in o th e r places. W e knew th a t this activ ity w as m o re th a n a n effort to fin d o u t w h a t w as missing. I t w as an effo rt to b rin g life d o w n to an o rg an ized , c o n tro llab le, an d m e a su ra b le dim ension. T h e in v en to ry sta rte d d u rin g th e first p a r t of S e p te m b e r w h e n th e fig h tin g w as a t its w o rst. Shells w ere fallin g a t th e ra te of one every tw o sec­ onds. O n cam p u s th e biology b u ild in g , th e in fir­ m a ry , a n d several d o rm ito ries w ere h it. A m o rta r scored an “ace” on o u r fav o rite tennis c o u rt. Soon 2 4 -hour cu rfew w as im posed u p o n th e city. In spite of these trem en d o u s odds, th e lib ra ry co n tin u ed w ith its co m p lete in v en to ry . F u rth e rm o re , a t any given tim e 6 0 -9 5 % of th e staff w as presen t an d c o n trib u te d to th e p ro ject. U ltim a te ly it p ro v e d to be a m ost efficient, th o ro u g h , a n d p ro d u c tiv e in ­ v entory. N a tu ra lly th e lib ra ry a n d its staff b e a r scars of th e violence of th e p ast decade. M any of these have developed into p e rm a n e n t idiosyncracies. O th ers I h o p e are only te m p o ra ry . T h e follow ing are som e of th e idiosyncracies: a. Staff. M any of th e professional lib ra ria n s have left B eirut. I t has been d ifficu lt to re p la ce th e m , a n d several of th e ir positions w e re excised in o rd e r to ease th e u n iv ersity ’s fin an c ia l problem s. This sh o rtag e of staff has h a m p e re d th e lib ra ry ’s efforts to forge a h e a d , a u to m a te , design n ew lib ra ry in ­ stru c tio n p ro g ra m s, preserve archives, an d develop staff. R e m a rk a b ly , th o se w h o w e re le ft b e h in d h av e b een able to c a rry on m ost of th e lib ra ry fu n c ­ tions w ith o u t in te rru p tio n . b . Book collection. D u rin g th e p ro lo n g ed co n ­ flict m a n y stu d en ts an d fa cu lty left th e c o u n try w ith o u t re tu rn in g b o rro w e d books. Some could n o t even com e to th e cam pus. Still others d ec la red th ey h a d lost th e ir houses, possessions, an d lib ra ry books d u rin g th e Isra eli in v asio n . T hese claim s w e re d ifficu lt to disprove, a n d th e losses w e re a b ­ sorbed as u n av o id ab le. O n th e o th e r h a n d , m an y fa cu lty b ro u g h t b ack th e n u m ero u s books th ey h a d ta k e n from th e lib ra ry to safe g u ard ag ain st possible v an d alism . 174 / C & R L N ew s c. C ensorship. All books are shipped to L eb a n o n by a ir freight. Boxes are inspected a t th e a irp o rt to p re v en t books dealing w ith sensitive issues from com ing into th e country. Q u ite often “sensitive is­ sues” w o u ld extend to such subjects as E tru sc a n vases,,d ep e n d in g on th e fancy of th e a irp o rt censor. F re q u e n tly these officials are ed u catio n ally h a n d i­ cap p ed an d ill-p rep ared to pass co m p eten t judg- A ny truths that are broadcast are partisan truths. m en t on these issues. d. L ib ra ry hours. D u e to cu rfew a n d difficulty in fin d in g tra n s p o rta tio n over th e green line, this year th e lib ra ry h a d to m ake adjustm ents in its hours an d staffing. T h e lib ra ry w o u ld be open only from 50 to 80 hours p er w eek, d ep e n d in g upon political conditions. e. L ib ra ry privileges for n o n -university people. As th e p re m ie r re se arc h collection in L e b a n o n , AUB libraries have alw ays catered to m an y users outside th e university. As security becam e tig h t, only people w ith AUB id en tificatio n w ere allow ed ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ s ­ ­ to com e in. T h e lib ra ry h a d to re a c t an d help it non-AUB p atro n s gain access to th e prem ises. D e ciding w h o could an d could no t be g ra n te d this clearan ce p u t co n stan t pressure on th e lib ra ry a d m in istratio n . f. A nnual leave. Surprisingly this b ecam e a seri ous p ro b lem for an a d m in istra to r to solve. E a rly on it becam e a p p a re n t th a t th e only w ay one could e n joy a v acatio n w as by leaving th e co u n try . L e b a non, a v acatio n ers’ p arad ise in th e past, h a d v irtu ally no p la c e w h e re one co u ld enjoy p e a c e an d q u iet aw ay from shelling or enem y occupation. L eaving th e c o u n try , how ever, is not easy. T he a irp o r t closes w ith co n sisten t u n p re d ic ta b ility . T h ere is co n stan t fear th a t you m ay leave b u t be u n ab le to re tu rn , forcing you to tak e an extended v acatio n th a t you can ill afford. M any save th e ir a n n u a l leaves to use w h en th ey ca n n o t cross the green line to com e to w ork. L ib ra ry staff w ho a t ten d ed th e IF L A conference in A ugust 1983 could not re tu rn to L eb an o n in tim e because th e a irp o rt h a d closed. T h eir forced v acatio n did no t tu rn out to be p leasa n t, since th ey sp en t m ost of th eir tim e listening to th e rad io or re a d in g new spapers to get new s of L eb an o n . In spite of th e intensity of th e h o rro r th a t has su r ro u n d e d L eb a n o n , it is th e d u ra tio n th a t has d em o ralized an d su b d u ed m ost of its p o p u latio n . T h ere seems no end in sight to th e te rro r th a t has forced th em into b e n u m b ed resignation. F or how long c a n th is w i n t e r o f v io le n c e b la n k e t th e w a r - rav ag ed country? F o r how long can people’s w ill to re b o u n d en d u re? ■ ■ Lebanon update W h en th e accom panying article a b o u t th e A m erican U niversity of B eirut w as w ritte n , the a u th o r, Sam uel F u stu k jian , h a d been d irecto r of AUB’s J a fe t L ib ra ry since J a n u a ry 1983. C u rre n tly he is serving as d ire c to r of th e lib ra ry at th e U niversity of South F lo rid a , St. Peters­ b u rg cam pus. H e w as on v ac atio n w h en th e re­ cen t B eirut crisis occu rred an d th e university w as closed. T h e n ig h t before he left B eirut, he an d his w ife C y n th ia (also a professional lib rarian ) cel­ e b ra te d h er b irth d a y w ith c h a m p a g n e an d cake a t th e house of AUB p resid en t M alcolm K err. K e rr w as tra g ic a lly assa ssin a te d tw o w eeks later. At this tim e th e re is some d o u b t as to w h e th e r th e recen t cease-fire w ill allow th e university an d its lib ra ry to re-open. E ven if it does, m an y faculty, students an d staff m ay be u n w illin g to re tu rn , c reatin g severe m a n p o w e r an d revenue sh o rtag es.— G M E . Beirut b om bing study O n O cto b er 23, 1983, a tru c k lad en w ith th e e q u iv a le n t o f o v e r 1 2 ,0 0 0 p o u n d s of T N T crashed th e p e rim e te r of th e U.S. com pound at B eirut In te rn a tio n a l A irp o rt, en tered th e B at­ talio n L a n d in g T eam H e a d q u a rte rs, an d re­ sulted in th e deaths of 241 U.S. m ilita ry person­ nel. In less th a n tw o weeks a com m ission was convened by th e S ecretary of D efense to con­ d u ct an in d ep en d e n t in q u iry into th e terro rist attack . T h e com m ission’s re p o rt has now been released. T h e R e p o r t on th e D O D C o m m issio n on B eirut In tern a tio n a l A irp o rt Terrorist A c t, O c­ tober 23, 1983, is a 150-page collection of in fo r­ m atio n a b o u t th e attack . It contains answ ers to questions on th e M arines’ p erfo rm an ce , secu­ rity, intelligence su p p o rt, casualty h an d lin g , an d acco u n tab ility . Copies, G PO stock n u m b e r 008-000-00400- 5, m ay be o rd ered (p rep aid only) for $4.75 from D ep t. 36-E P, S u p erin ten d en t of D ocum ents, W ash in g to n , D C 20402.