living books – Personal Dialog to Combat Prejudices

27.11.2008

What could be better than reading a good book? Engaging in a dialog with a “living book”! November 28-29, an organization named living books will put you in up-close-and-personal contact with people who are affected by prejudice in their everyday lives.

At a living books event, you can take out a “book” just like you do at the public library. But these aren’t bound volumes; they’re human beings who can be “read” over the course of a personal dialog. These chats, which last about half an hour, are meant to serve as a setting for interpersonal contact in order to reduce prejudices. This isn’t a matter of preaching; it’s simply to let people experience the potential of human diversity.

Now, “living books” are being sought by the organizers of an upcoming event on the campus of the Upper Austria University of Applied Sciences. Potential applicants are anyone who’s a member of a socially marginalized group or is a victim of prejudices: for instance, refugees and foreigners, police officers and the homeless, or even Moslem women who choose to wear a headscarf in public.

The living books event in Linz is being staged under the auspices of, among others, the staff of Linz09 Capital of Culture Neighborhood of the Month project. About 20 “books” are expected to attend.

living books
Friday, November 28, 2008, 2-9 p.m., and Saturday, November 29, 2008, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Upper Austria University of Applied Sciences, Linz Campus, Garnisonstraße 21, 4020

www.livingbooks.at
Apply to be a “living book” via e-mail to c.floner@livingbooks.at.

In cooperation with the City of Linz and the Upper Austria University of Applied Sciences