CU Worker Distributes Used Books

On any given picturesque day in early April, the steps of Low Library are a hub of activity. Today was no different as Lisa Cammett, a secretary at the Columbia University School of Social Work, took to the center of campus with about 30 academic books up for grabs, along with information sheets and a petition about book disposal on campus.

"Sign the petition! Free books!" Cammett yelled as students brushed past. Cammett hoped to eventually gain 1,000 signatures to send to the president's office.

Cammett's book giveaway on Low's steps has a longer history than most onlookers may have supposed. In fact, it dates back to 2004, when the School of Social Work moved from McVickar Hall to 1255 Amsterdam Ave., when Cammett first noticed something startling-thousands of books were being thrown into the garbage. "I was so upset over the destruction of academic material that I spent three years on it," Cammett said, adding that for the last three years, on Labor Day, she has set up on Low's steps in order to give the books proper homes.

In 2004, she salvaged 25 crates from the garbage and successfully unloaded 10 onto independent booksellers along Broadway. Since then, she has received calls from professors and campus offices that wanted to be rid of their books. Remarking on her continued stock, Cammett said, "I've been the stand-in for the used bookstore we don't have."

Cammett also sent about 400 of the books she recovered from the garbage to a school of social work in Uganda in 2004.

"Most of what was disposed of was very high-quality stuff," Cammett said. "Some were brand new ... even required texts for classes."

Besides giving away books, she and Steve Hamilton, a rapper, caused quite a spectacle as they gave multiple live performances of their song "Driven to Rap," detailing the ethical, academic, and ecological ramifications of throwing away books.

Cammett decided to make a DVD documentary highlighting her experiences with these books. She made the DVD, she says, "in order to raise consciousness, ... to explain to the public what's going on, and also to make it artistic enough to draw people in." She hopes "to give them [other people] a sense of the hopefulness and colorfulness of doing something" about the book disposal."

Campus visitor Amy Metzenbaum stopped by as the rap song progressed. "I thought the rap song was really fun and an interesting way to learn about the issue," said Metzenbaum. "I think it's a shame to throw away books and don't really understand why they would."

Chris Zink, SIPA '08, suggested the establishment of a campus donation day, but according to Helen Bielak, custodial manager for campus operations, there is already such a mechanism in place, in the form of a program called Green Days. During the summer months, big dumpsters are placed in the middle of campus for professors to dispose of their unneeded office materials and books.

"We try to maximize recycling as much as possible," said Bielak, noting that professors often dispose of their books by exchanging them with other professors. "It's all about educating the community on what we can do ... in a more environmentally friendly way."

Still, many books continue to be thrown away daily, according to Cammett. The disposal of these books, she said, showed a high level of insensitivity. "There are all kinds of places that could have taken this stuff," Cammett said. But she added that, "In their defense, academics are under such pressure to be competitive, ... [they] didn't have time to take responsibility."