libraries & philanthropy ii || literacy, equality, and community: libraries, philanthropy, and...

Literacy, Equality, and Community: Libraries, Philanthropy, and the Literacy Movement inContemporary FranceAuthor(s): Mary Niles MaackSource: Libraries & Culture, Vol. 31, No. 2, Libraries & Philanthropy II (Spring, 1996), pp. 466-491Published by: University of Texas PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25548448 .

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Literacy, Equality, and Community: Libraries,

Philanthropy, and the Literacy Movement in

Contemporary France

Mary Niks Maack

In order to understand the role of voluntary associations in the modern

French literacy movement, it is important to put such action in the con

text of previous traditions of private sector support for reading and librar

ies. Although some of the contemporary volunteer organizations that

sponsor libraries or promote reading in France were created during the

interwar years, the scope of this paper is mainly confined to the period since World War II, with emphasis on the decade and a half from 1977 to 1992 when the contemporary literacy movement got underway. Activities

of nonprofit groups are discussed, and these efforts to promote libraries,

literacy, and reading are

categorized according to whether the sponsoring

organizations view their primary role as that of a catalyst, a partner, or a

provider of services that substitute for those that were not adequately sup

ported by the government. The contributions made by these groups to the

public discourse on literacy is also examined.

Analytical Framework

Before discussing the intersections of philanthropy, literacy, and li

braries in France, I would like to introduce a definition and a typology of

philanthropic action that will provide an analytical framework for this

paper. A convenient starting place is Roger Lohman's broad but suc

cinct definition of philanthropy as "the social organization of attempts to make the world a better place . . .

[through] voluntary giving, volun

tary service, and voluntary association for the benefit of others.'^In

France most library philanthropy that benefited the general reader

(rather than the scholar or specialist) has involved community-based ef

forts of volunteers working through associations whose broader mission

might be described as popular education. The literacy movement like

wise involved groups engaged in grassroots educational efforts. Al

though they share a similar mission, that of improving people's lives

through access to reading, such associations have had different goals Mary Niles Maack is Professor of library and information science at the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles. Libraries & Culture, Vol. 31, No. 2, Spring 1996 ?1996 by the University of Texas Press, P.O. Box 7819, Austin, TX 78713-7819



467

and they have conceived their role in relationship to the state and to the

private sector in different ways. In some cases the goal of voluntary organizations has been to serve as

a catalyst, with the objective of later obtaining government support for

literacy programs and/or library services. In other instances the main

goal of the nonprofit organization was to form partnerships with public and/or private sector organizations in order to supplement the activities

of state-funded public libraries or adult basic education programs. Fi

nally, in some cases the goal has been to provide services that would sub

stitute for those which the voluntary association believed should be

provided by the government but which the government either failed to

provide or supported inadequately. The three categories which are shown on Table 1 should be thought

of as reflecting the dominant roles rather than the exclusive preoccupa tions of the groups that will be discussed. For example, although certain

voluntary associations saw their role as that of a catalyst, they also pro

vided literacy training, sometimes offering long-term programs which

they hoped would later be replaced by government-sponsored training. The three categories are not discrete but exist on a continuum. Thus the

work of some voluntary associations may fall between an effort to create

partnerships in order to supplement the work of existing state-sup

ported programs and an attempt to substitute for the lack of adequate services provided by the state. Finally, the relationships suggested here

should be seen as dynamic, since the goals of an organization may

change as the government or other groups become more involved in its

sphere of activities.

Voluntary Action as a Substitute for State-Supported Libraries in France

Because the French government often offers grants or subventions to

nonprofit organizations, the relationship between the voluntary sector

and the state is in many ways much closer and more complicated than

such relationships in the United States. A 1901 French law regulating

voluntary groups states that an "association is the convention by which two or more persons place in common, in a

permanent manner, their

acquaintanceship or their activity for a purpose other than personal

gain."2 In a regional study published in 1976, the sociologist Marie-Fran

coise Lanfant found that the majority of associations constituted under the provisions of the 1901 law were closely affiliated with the church, the

municipality, or the national government. She further noted that "the near totality of the associations, perhaps 98% of the cases, count in their

administrative council a person belonging to one of these institutions."3



468 L&C/ The Literacy Movement in Contemporary France

TABLE 1

Typology of Voluntary Action According to Primary Role

Catalyst Partner Substitute

Actions

Public awareness Provide training Offer ongoing

campaigns Coordinate action of long-term programs Mobilization of different groups volunteers

Establishment of

model programs

Objectives

Legislation Reach different Eliminate need for

Government funding populations state support Professionalize training Provide Reach unserved

Institutionalize programs complementary populations

services

Duration Ongoing, often in Ongoing, mosdy

Temporary, to be co-operation with independent of

phased out state agencies state support

Several lay groups which have worked for decades to promote reading and literacy have had close relationships with the church, either

through the leadership of individual clergy or through the work of church-affiliated groups such as the Women's Catholic Action League (Ligue d'Action Catholique Generate Feminine?ACGF). While the

philosophy of these organizations may be deeply rooted in Christian be

lief, they generally seek to provide support to individuals or communi

ties regardless of whether they share the same religious convictions. Two

French scholars, Yves Alix and Michel P. Schmitt, suggest that there are

similar psychological, moral, and political profiles shared by those who

work in a wide range of voluntary associations whose goal is to promote

literacy and reading. They observe that in spite of ideological diver

gences among dedicated laypeople and those with deep religious con

victions, all share a profound humanistic belief that the books they promote will serve to express and reinforce the idea of "the dignity of

Man." Alix and Schmitt continue:

In principle, reading is considered first and foremost as an ethical act.

To promote reading is to demonstrate a social-educational commit



469

ment whose postulate could be stated as: "to read is good." ... Pro

fessionals or dedicated volunteers, all take on the responsibility of

readers' advisers... . They nourish the humanistic tradition of read

ing: all share the faith in the moral progress of the individual, who, when lead toward self-enrichment and greater self-knowledge can

then share better with others, respect the ideas of others, and develop an understanding and appreciation of knowledge, of personal reflec

tion and even of meditation . . .4

Before discussing how such groups have promoted literacy training, it

is first important to take into account the role of the voluntary sector in

providing library service to general readers in France. During the period between World Wars I and II French library leaders, such as Gabriel

Henriot, became frustrated with the government's failure to act on pro

posals to improve and extend public library service. Henriot, who had

served as Chief Inspector of Libraries for the city of Paris, was well aware

that to "count on the state to provide good books . . . means

having the

time to wait." He therefore wrote in his 1943 book:

It has never been more urgent... to appeal to all persons of good will. That is the goal of the bibliotheques pour tous (libraries for

everyone) . . . which have the noble three-fold task of recreation,

instruction and education for all social classes.5

For some time prior to this, Henriot had been working closely with the

Catholic Women's Action League (ACGF) which in 1936 began to set up a system of small lending libraries that served as substitute "public

li

brary collections" in communities which lacked adequate municipal li

brary services. These small libraries, known as Bibliotheques Pour Tous, were often set up in storefronts rather than in ecclesiastical buildings. Their collections were

"apolitical and non-denominational, at the same

time affirming ... a spiritual vision of man."6 Although most of the

libraries were operated by volunteers, since the 1930s a small corps of

professionals were employed in Paris to provide cataloging and biblio

graphic services. In addition, trained librarians, who were responsible for regional libraries, offered technical assistance to smaller libraries in

their departements. Realizing that the volunteers also needed training, the

league began in 1941 to offer correspondence courses in library tech

niques. In view of this structure for service delivery, technical support, and volunteer training, the historian Noe Richter describes the Biblio

theques Pour Tous as providing "the first model of a [library] organiza tion covering the whole territory of France."7

In 1971 the Union Nationale Culture et Bibliotheques pour Tous (Na




tional Union for Culture and Libraries for All?UNCBT) became a non

profit association separate from the Catholic women's league. Since that

time, the organization has remained durable, and twenty years later UN

CBT counted 1,500 libraries and 7,000 volunteer "librarians" certified

as having taken introductory training along with a specialization. In ad

dition, about two dozen trained librarians were employed in the central

and the regional libraries. Even though readers must pay a small annual

fee as well as a borrowing fee (calculated as the cost of a daily newspa

per) they check out 6.5 million books per year from these libraries.8

A second example of a "substitute system" of libraries is the network

of general interest collections found in French factories, commercial en

terprises, and government utilities such as the gas and electric company and the national railway system (Societe Nationale des Chemins de

Fer?SNCF). No comprehensive count of these libraries has been done, but a 1992 estimate suggests that there may be approximately three

thousand collections in all.9 Although some general book collections ex

isted in workplaces before World War II, their systematic development can be dated to a 1945 law which required French corporations to set

aside money for social and cultural associations known as "comites

d'entreprise." Even though the funding comes from corporations, because many of

these workplace libraries (bibliotheques d'entreprise) draw on volun

teer assistance, they also benefit from the philanthropy of voluntary ser

vice. In referring to these libraries, Claudie Tabet of the National

Directorate for Books and Reading (Direction du Livre et de la Lecture, henceforth called DLL) at the Ministry of Culture asserts that "associa

tion activities are irreplaceable for assuring the diffusion of books

throughout the territory."10 However, she points

out that libraries oper

ated by voluntary associations have recendy become involved in close co

operation with public libraries, which play a role as resource centers as

well as providing training for personnel from this "third network" of

libraries. Cooperation with public libraries can be important for the

smaller collections; on the average the size of these workplace libraries is

eight thousand volumes as compared to an average collection of forty thousand volumes in a municipal library.11

Although much more loosely organized than the public and university

library networks, this "third network" provides convenient services for

workers and their families. In fact, the 1988 survey of a sample of these

libraries indicated that over thirty percent of the eligible users were reg istered as borrowers. This ratio is significandy higher than the percent

age of eligible users (15.4 percent) who actually register to use public libraries.12 While the primary clientele of workplace libraries are em

ployees and their families, some do allow others to use their services. For



471

example, a survey of the network of 182 libraries operated by the French

national railroad showed that over a quarter of these libraries extended

loan privileges to persons not affiliated with the SNCF.13

Although workplace library collections were not included in the 1989 DLL survey of library literacy activities, it is possible that some of these

collections do acquire books for new readers or engage in other efforts to promote literacy training. However, Phillippe Pineau, a librarian

working in a firm with 750 employees, noted that he knew of no one who

would be willing "to give a negative impression of himself' by admitting

literacy problems. Pineau commented that he has regularly provided volunteer tutoring through a nonprofit literacy organization in a disad

vantaged neighborhood rather than offer reading instruction or literacy materials in his library where it would not be possible for the adult learn ers to preserve their anonymity.14

The Role of Voluntary Association in Challenging Assumptions about

Literacy and Creating New Definitions

While voluntary associations have been very active in promoting read

ing and library services for many decades, their involvement with literacy work (aside from a few programs targeted specifically toward immi

grants) is much more recent. Nonetheless, since the 1970s the role of

community-based nonprofit organizations has been critical in creating a

"literacy movement" that has succeeded in drawing public attention to the needs of those native-born citizens who had attended school but had not mastered reading and writing skills. This movement not only chal

lenged assumptions about universal literacy, it also attempted to rede

fine the nature of literacy problems as they exist in a first world setting. The recent "discovery" that a high percentage of adults lack basic

skills in reading and writing should not be interpreted as evidence that the reading ability of the general population has fallen drastically in the last part of this century. Although the public school system has been well established for over one hundred years, recent studies by French histo rians have demonstrated that "the history of literacy acquisition does not coincide with the history of formal schooling, and one cannot be used interchangeably to describe the other."15 In retrospect, it then be comes apparent that twentieth-century literacy estimates (which were

usually based on years of schooling or on self-reports of reading and

writing ability gathered by the census) often served to create the illusion that industrialized countries had succeeded in achieving universal lit

eracy. Even though literacy levels may be higher than in the past, there is litde empirical evidence to measure changes in reading skill over time, to indicate what proportion of the population has had problems with




either reading or writing, or to document changing expectations about

the nature of literacy skills needed to function in contemporary society. Like other industrialized countries, France held the assumption that

universal literacy had been attained by the middle of the twentieth cen

tury, and after 1947 the question: "Do you know how to read and write?" was dropped by the census.16 Although there was some acknowledgment of the need for literacy training among immigrants, France officially re

sponded to a 1979 questionnaire from the European Economic Com

munity that illiteracy ("analphabetisme") did not exist in the country.17

Despite the government's denial of literacy problems, by the late

1970s a national campaign to stimulate public concern and action in re

gard to illiteracy had already been launched at the grassroots level by

voluntary associations. The group always credited as the catalyst in the

contemporary literacy movement in France is an organization called

Aide a Toute Detresse-Quart Monde (known in French as ATD-Quart Monde and in English as the Fourth World Movement). As suggested by

its name (literally, "aid in all distress") this organization is concerned

primarily with helping those who are known as "les plus demunis"?a

phrase which could be translated as "the most disadvantaged" or per

haps "the poorest of the poor." Founded by Father Joseph Wresinski in

1957, this charitable association did not initially focus on literacy. How

ever, at the time of its twentieth anniversary in 1977 Father Wresinski not

only launched a literacy program within the ATD, he also began a na

tional campaign to draw government attention to social issues linked

with both poverty and illiteracy.

Shortly after the campaign was launched, the ATD introduced the

term "illettres" which began to be used to describe those who had at

one time learned to read and write, but had not retained these skills at a

level sufficient for meeting their everyday needs. In a 1979 report the

ATD stated that it had chosen to use the neologism "illettrisme" be

cause "analphabetisme" had a pejorative connotation and was generally associated with literacy problems among immigrants.18 As the term "il

lettrisme" came to take on the meaning of "functional illiteracy," it

gradually replaced the word "analphabetisme," which is now generally used to describe literacy problems faced by those who had never learned

to read and write. Although the ATD and other voluntary associations

were concerned about the need for basic skills training, the term "illet

trisme" was always seen in its wider social context. Another nonprofit

organization, the Association Francaise pour la Lecture (French Read

ing Association?AFL), a branch of the International Reading Associa

tion, also entered the debate on terminology. One of its most prominent leaders, Jean Foucambert, expressed

concern that "confusion exists be

tween 'analphabetisme,' which should mean the lack of certain me



473

chanical skills and 'illettrisme' which we [within the AFL] define as the

lack of familiarity with written culture and its usage.''19 Often this lack of

exposure to books was seen as being a part of the culture of poverty. Because national attention was drawn by the ATD and other voluntary

associations to the problems of the most impoverished, the French gov ernment commissioned an official report on poverty which was submit

ted to the prime minister in 1981 by Gabriel Oheix. Although a national

literacy campaign was one of the actions recommended by the "Oheix

Report," over a year passed before the newly elected socialist govern

ment asked the Ministry of Social Welfare and National Solidarity to pur sue these issues. Subsequently, in January 1983 the Council of Ministers

acknowledged that "illiteracy is an important obstacle to any coherent

policy of social and economic integration" and commissioned a na

tional study of illiteracy.20 Following the submission of the 1984 report entitled Des illettres en France, an interministerial committee known as the

Groupe Permanent de Lutte Contre 1'Illettrisme (Standing Committee

for the Struggle Against Illiteracy?GPLI) was created in order to coor

dinate the efforts of various ministries and of private sector organiza tions. Thus by the mid-1980s illiteracy was officially recognized as a

national issue, and the struggle against "illettrisme" had become a part of the public discourse.

With encouragement from the GPLI and from the Ministry of Cul

ture, a number of municipal libraries began experimenting with services for users with limited reading skills. By 1989 when a survey of library lit

eracy activities was published, seventy-two percent of the municipal and the central libraries responding were familiar with the GPLI, and over one-third of all those surveyed were engaged in some kind of literacy support activities.21 A number of libraries also worked closely with pri vate sector groups including some organizations that were originally founded to promote popular education or to aid immigrants. However,

the most influential literacy advocate has remained the ATD-Quart Monde. Because of the efforts of ATD volunteers to create "biblio

theques de rue" (literally, libraries on the street), I will focus greatest attention on the ATD and its influence on public libraries.

Voluntary Action as a Catalyst to Stimulate Public and Private Literacy Efforts in France

Founded by Father Joseph Wresinski, who had himself grown up in an

impoverished family, the ATD-Quart Monde movement had two goals: to work in partnership with the poor and to "represent these families

vis-a-vis the society in which they live and from which they have been ex cluded."22 In general, the ATD has focused on four basic human rights:




(1) the right to housing, (2) the right of all children to be raised in their own families, (3) the right to vocational training, to a trade, and to fi

nancial security, and (4) the right to knowledge.23 In 1957, when Father

Wresinski created the ATD in Noisy-le-Grand, a temporary housing site

(cite d'urgence) where 252 families were lodged, he declared that

"more than bread and short-term aid, it is knowledge that this popula tion needs."24 One of Wresinski's first acts, the creation "of a library in

the middle of the shanty town," was later described by his followers as a

"symbolic gesture."25 During the 1960s the ATD organized cultural cen

ters (pivots culturels) at various sites, and these were always "centered

on the library."26 As the movement grew Father Wresinski was joined by a small staff of

"paid volunteers" with a wide range of experience, from engineering,

nursing, and social work, to university teaching and manual labor. These

volunteers and their families made a commitment to both live and work

among the poor. In addition, hundreds of people from many different

social, ethnic, and religious backgrounds were recruited to work as un

paid volunteers (allies). All these individuals accepted the movement's

strong commitment to mutual respect based on an attempt to under

stand the lives of the people with whom they work.

By the late 1970s the ATD-Quart Monde had not only achieved

recognition by the French government, it had also gained the status of

an internationally recognized, nongovernmental organization that par

ticipated in events organized by the United Nations and by UNESCO.

Thus when the literacy campaign was launched by Father Wresinski, the

ATD was able to operate both at the grassroots level and in the public forum where an awareness

campaign was directed at the general popu

lation and at government decision makers. While some literacy efforts

had already been undertaken as part of other activities of the ATD, it was

on 17 November 1977 at a meeting in Paris of five thousand delegates from the movement that Father Wresinski launched his appeal: "Que celui qui sait apprenne a celui qui ne sait pas." (Let those who know

how teach those who do not know how.)27 This "pedagogy of reciproc

ity" was inspired by the ideas advocated by Paulo Freire of Brazil. In par

ticular, Freire's concept of dialogue influenced the ATD approach which was based on "honor, esteem, love, sharing, recognition and not

on shortcomings, deficiency, abilities, or assistance."28 In addition, lit

eracy training was seen as "part of a whole," because it was to be based

on an understanding of the social situation, family responsibilities, prior

knowledge, and work experience of the learners.29

The ATD literacy campaign grew out of a desire to empower the fami

lies in the movement to participate in civic life and to be able to com

municate their experiences as well as their needs. Claude Ferrand,



475

Delegue General of the ATD-Quart Monde International writes: "The

mission of the Movement is to make the voice of the most disadvantaged heard in the public forum."30 Another aspect of the ATD's literacy work

with young people and adults is the focus on lifelong learning. One ATD

publication that devotes a chapter to "the struggle against ignorance" states: '"Learning to Learn' becomes a priority for a real integration of

the most disadvantaged" because it provides "the keys which can open

up the future."31 In fact the word "key" (cie or clef in French) became

an acronym for literacy groups within the movement. While some have

the pragmatic title Comite Lire et Ecrire (Committee for Reading and

Writing?CLE), the group organized in Versailles perhaps more aptly

expressed the ATD's holistic approach by choosing Culture, Lecture,

Ecriture, Formation (Culture, Reading, Writing, Job Training?CLEF) as its name. While the immediate purpose of these groups was to provide

much-needed instruction, their longer-range goal was to serve as a cata

lyst. In fact one of the ATD leaders, Claude Ferrand, asserts: "The move

ment does not have literacy training as its goal. If after 1977 it created

Comites Lire et Ecrire, it was in the hope that others would take over."32

While some of these committees remained active in the 1990s, others

had found ways to pass on their responsibilities to basic education pro

grams that were either sponsored or aided by the government.

Nearly a decade before the ATD became engaged in its national lit

eracy campaign, volunteers had already begun to encourage children to

read through the creation of "bibliotheques de rue," which I will refer

to as "street libraries."33 Not libraries in the sense of an enclosed space with a collection of materials, "bibliotheques de rue" were simply bas

kets of illustrated books carried by one or two volunteers who would ar

rive at a public housing project where they spread a blanket in the

courtyard and waited for children to arrive. They would then read books

for an hour or two, usually on

Wednesday and Saturday afternoons when

public schools were not in session. By 1975 the ATD had created seventy five "bibliotheques de rue" which were "staffed" by 330 unpaid volun

teers.34 A short, vivid description of one of these street libraries is

offered by Anna Franco, a master's degree candidate at the Sorbonne

whose study was based on her service as an unpaid ATD volunteer from

1978 to 1980. She writes:

A "street library" is adults who come, two times per week, to spend a few hours in a housing development in order to read books with children. The motivation is, on the one hand, the love of books, of

stories. On the other hand, it is the necessity of sharing knowledge, and the certainty that, in order to escape from their isolation (ex




elusion), these families must have access to culture, and therefore to reading and writing.35

This theme of overcoming the "exclusion" of the poor from the civic

and cultural life of mainstream French society was a central goal of all

aspects of the work of the ATD.

In approaching their work with street libraries, ATD leaders realized

that for children living in extreme poverty the curriculum of the public school "covered another reality that was not their own."36 The volun

teers also recognized that the book was not necessarily seen by impover ished communities as a source of learning but rather as a symbol of an

elite culture in which they had no part. In continuing her description of

the street libraries, Anna Franco notes that

The ATD movement wishes to implant libraries in the heart of the

housing development, in order that the book, symbol and com

pendium of knowledge, be present in the middle of the city, in the

street, among the families so that as many opportunities as possible can be offered to the child at all stages of his development.37

Although Anna Franco was to find her three years of work with the

ATD immensely rewarding, she did not hide the difficulties of the vol

unteers' early efforts when they were often greeted with suspicion, some

times even with violence. She observed that initially the books "seemed

to frighten and tempt" the children whose violence was often directed

to objects, especially the "book" as an object which may have repre sented for them failures they experienced at school.38With a great deal

of patience she and her coworkers gradually gained the children's con

fidence. However, she recalls: "Little by litde the violence diminished, and even though one of us sometimes got a bucket of water on the head

or a kick in the shins, these were only isolated incidents, an adolescent

prank or the sudden anger of a child."39

Although children sometimes read aloud at the sessions, the goal of

the street library was not to teach reading but to "familiarize the chil

dren with reading, with books and stories and to permit them to express themselves as freely as possible."40 In addition to books, ATD volunteers

also brought materials for painting, coloring, and making collages in or

der to encourage the children to express themselves. Only after a year had passed did they begin to loan books direcdy to the children. Be

cause of their limited collection, a child was allowed only one book at a

time. Book borrowing was nonetheless an important step forward, since

children came regularly to the sessions to exchange their books, and

they were encouraged to share the books they took home with other



477

family members. Anna Franco notes that contact with the parents was

actively sought because the ATD's longer-term goal was for the library to

"be taken over, in this form or in another form, by the families. There

fore we regularly tried to associate young people and parents with our

activities, inviting them to join with us and read with the children."41 In addition to encouraging families to take part in their educational

activities at all levels, leaders within the ATD have worked closely with

the local and national government, seeking financial support for the

cultural and educational services initiated by the volunteers. In one

instance ATD volunteers began working in a temporary housing devel

opment (cite de transit) in Cretil where they established a street library in the late 1960s. After twelve years of activity the ATD requested that the

city take over its book-related activities. Therefore in 1978 the ATD of

fered its quarters to the city so that a municipal children's library could

be installed. A librarian was trained on the site, working with the ATD; in

1979 when the library was officially opened, five persons were assigned to the staff. For the next two years they worked closely with ATD volun teers and families, meeting weekly to cooperate in the loan of books and

in program activities. In describing the changing role of the ATD, a staff

member recalled: "Their disengagement was progressive. They consid

ered their departure very positive ... an enfranchisement of the popu

lation" who now had access to public facilities.42 In other instances the ATD's effort to involve the government has also

had considerable success. Claudie Tabet from the Direction du Livre et

de la Lecture (DLL) reported in 1992 that "an exceptional network" of

seventy-five street libraries organized by volunteers was expanding rap idly

as a result of annual grants given to them by the Ministry of Cul

ture.43 With these developments, the ATD seems to be transforming its role from that of a catalyst in the French literacy movement to that of an

active partner cooperating with the government in literacy efforts

among the poor.

Voluntary Associations as Partners in French Literacy Efforts

Although many different voluntary associations that promote popular education have developed complementary relationships with the French

government, I will draw one more example from the work of the ATD

Quart Monde. During the 1970s when ATD volunteers were working with a street library in Besancon, the municipality opened a children's

library called Clairs-Soleils, which was located in a disadvantaged neigh borhood where about twenty percent of the population came from North Africa and another seventeen percent were

immigrants from

other countries. For seven years after its opening in 1975, Clairs-Soleils




functioned as a "center for initiation into reading and children's art," where a variety of artistic media were used to prepare children for read

ing. In 1982 the library also decided to initiate "reading in the street."

After three years of experience with this project the library acquired a

minivan that was used by the staff to take books to some of the poorest

housing projects. The three goals of this project were (1) to make the

library known to users by taking the book out of its institutional con

text, (2) to help the children discover the pleasure of reading in their

own environment, and (3) to use reading to stimulate intercultural re

lationships.44 Because the library had previously been doing innovative program

ming by going out into the housing projects, the staff were able to reach

those who had not come into the library. Although the outlay for books

and materials was probably modest, this project did represent an invest

ment on the part of Besancon, because sixty hours of staff time per month was devoted to the project.45 While most of the staff effort was

spent on reading with the children, there was also time allotted for

weekly meetings with community partners, including members of the

ATD-Quart Monde who continued to sponsor street libraries in other lo

cations. In a survey for her 1992 memoire at the French national library school (Ecole Nationale Superieure des Sciences de l'lnformation et des

Bibliotheques?ENSSIB) Dominique Layat did not find evidence of

other cities that had made this kind of resource commitment to street

library work. However, a number of municipal libraries in cities such as

Paris, Aix-en-Provence, Tarbes, Toulouse, Vaulx-en-Velin, and Limoges

cooperated closely with ATD volunteers and regularly lent books to

street libraries.46

Another example of close cooperation between librarians, volunteer

associations, and government agencies comes from Rouen. There a lo

cal branch of a national association for popular education transformed

itself into an organization for training in literacy and basic skills. Known

as Education et Formation, this nonprofit organization was led by an an

thropologist, Michel Chourin, who developed a unique training pro

gram which features "teaching French from a holistic approach taking into account the totality of the cultural, social and occupational context

of the persons concerned."47 Like the ATD, Education et Formation

also sought government support and became involved in a public aware

ness campaign on the need for literacy training. After several efforts they succeeded in getting government funding to develop a literacy training

program in 1983. The following year their innovative program attracted

the attention of the GPLI, the new interministerial agency created to

promote and coordinate literacy activities.

At the initiative of the Prefect of Haute Normandie a regional coordi



479

nating body was created known as the Groupe Regional de Lutte contre

lTllettrisme (GRLI). This coordinating body, which was modeled on the

GPLI in Paris, was headed by Danielle Colombel, who immediately be

gan to build partnerships with local government agencies, educators, and voluntary associations, including Education et Formation. She

writes that the first goal was to make available to the most disadvantaged and marginalized people a means of simultaneously addressing the mul

tiple handicaps that they encountered in their daily life. In addition to

the lack of basic education, this population had difficulties in employ ment, health care, and housing. At the end of 1986 a network of Ateliers

de Formation de Base (Workshops for Basic Education) were set with

the goal of offering neighborhood-based training that would be adapted to the learning style of the individual and would permit him or her to

move on to vocational training and then to a job. In the first stage of this

project, ten ateliers (each consisting of a group of about fifteen persons) were established. Believing that an instructor working alone could not

succeed, each atelier featured a team made up of community partners such as social workers, individuals from agencies that deal with housing, health and labor, teachers from the local schools, and librarians. As part of the training of the instructors, individuals from these different fields

met together to discuss illiteracy in its multiple dimensions.48

Literacy, Libraries, and Philanthropy in France

In France partnerships between voluntary associations and govern ment agencies have been vital in providing library services to unserved communities and in promoting and delivering literacy training. Claudie

Tabet, who has worked with many popular education associations, notes that voluntary groups are not

only free of bureaucratic constraints, but

they are also "imaginative, accessible to a broad public, anchored in the fabric of the local community and close to where people live."49 She therefore sees such organizations as representing important "bridges" for people who are difficult for public agencies?such as libraries?to attract.

French municipal libraries have indeed become much more numer

ous, attractive, and accessible since the 1970s. A recent study showed that the percentage of registered borrowers increased from 8.6 percent of all eligible users in 1977 to 15.4 percent in 1989; at the same time the number of books loaned nearly doubled, going from 51.5 million to

97.2 million.50 Yet despite this record of impressive growth, evidence from a national survey of cultural practices indicates that library users

were still drawn mainly from among upper- and middle-level managers and to a lesser extent, from among white-collar workers.51 Class differ




ences remain a factor in library use, and some French librarians believe

that public libraries continue to be seen by less-educated users as some

what forbidding. In a 1986 study of use of libraries by young laborers, Nicole Robine found that when these individuals came to the library

they became aware of their cultural differences and that once they were

out of school they found that no one they knew went to the library any

longer.52 A similar appraisal of obstacles to library use was articulated by the team of librarians and educators at Bobigny, who commented,

We are convinced that working groups (groupes de travail) includ

ing different community partners provide an unusual (inhabitu

elle) opportunity for reflection by library professionals and that

there is a great deal to learn in order to remove from the library an

image that still frightens the public (emphasis added) .53

Those French librarians who worked with street libraries, brought books

to poor neighborhoods (colportage du livre), and built partnerships with the community organizations have found that such efforts not only benefit potential users, they also benefit the library.54

While library literacy efforts may not be widespread, where they have

taken hold they have influenced the nature of library work. One of the

most innovative developments to occur in France is a project to train li

brary assistants who come from disadvantaged neighborhoods. These in

dividuals who have already had experience with street libraries are

trained through a library internship and through classes for social work

ers. The ones who complete this training receive a library assistant cer

tificate from the Association des Bibliothecaires Francais and are given the title, "Mediateur du Livre." In addition to working with street librar

ies and taking books directly into disadvantaged neighborhoods, these

"mediators" are completely integrated into the library staff where they

provide a much needed link between the municipal library and the

poorest segments of the community.55

Voluntary Associations, Intellectuals, and the Discourse on Literacy

Much of this paper has dealt with literacy work among the impover ished, not only because this group has been a major focus of efforts by

voluntary associations, but also because it was through the discussion of

poverty that the issues of illiteracy entered the public discourse in

France. In 1990 Evelyne Pisier, who was then head of the Directorate of

Books and Reading (DLL) at the Ministry of Culture, noted:

Even though the most disadvantaged (les plus demunis) today



481

represent only two to three percent of the population, they dem

onstrate that the risk of exclusion, of marginalization, of "inferior

ization" also threatens those who are less illiterate but whose number does not cease to

grow.56

These issues of exclusion and marginalization of the illiterate, regard less of their economic situation, became central to what might be called the "discourse on civic literacy." Some of the civic concerns relating to access to knowledge carry over into another set of arguments which I will describe as the "discourse on literacy and culture." Finally, a third per

spective, which might be categorized as the "intellectual discourse on

literacy," is articulated by scholars, librarians, officials, and activists who

attempt to place the question of illiteracy within a broader social and

historical context by discussing the growth of mass literacy as well as is sues such as multiple levels of literacy and diverse uses of reading.

Long before the modern literacy movement was launched, leaders of

voluntary associations and library professionals had been engaged in a

discourse that emphasized the relationship between reading and de

mocracy. In his book Bibliotheques pour tous, which was published during the dark days of the occupation, Gabriel Henriot reflects:

What happens, especially during difficult times, is that the daily press, the radio and the cinema undergo the exigencies of propa

ganda and censorship. The book partially escapes this tyranny and often transmits intact the thoughts of those who honor humanity; from this perspective, it is thus necessary to give back to books the

primacy they have lost to the media that are more rapid, but are more superficial in the diffusion of ideas.5

Writing five decades later, Alix and Schmitt note that for most voluntary associations which promote libraries and reading, the book is seen as an alternative to the "stupefying vulgarity of mass media civilization." These groups also believe that well-chosen books can foster "democratic humanism and civic responsibility [which] are . . . essential values along with fraternity and social justice."58

Similar ideas have frequently been articulated by voluntary associa tions active in the contemporary literacy movement. From the begin

ning of its literacy campaign, the ATD-Quart Monde engaged in the "discourse of civic literacy," emphasizing that reading and writing are

inextricably linked to information access, knowledge, and civic partici pation. One of the ATD's publications prominently features a quote from Father Wresinski stating, "Knowledge is neither a gift nor a privi




lege, it is a right."59 A similar point is made by Jean-Marie Anglade, an ATD volunteer who asserts:

The right to information is part of civil and political liberty. It is conditioned by the right of free association, without which we can

not develop ideas and express common opinions that have influ ence on the national conduct of affairs.60

While much emphasis is placed on reading, writing is also seen as im

portant by ATD leaders, because it provides a means for the impover ished to communicate with the larger society. Claude Ferrand, Delegue

General of the ATD-Quart Monde International writes:

If lack of access to basic education, if illiteracy constitutes an intol erable blow to the rights of Man, it is not only because it deprives a

portion of citizens the use of the tool of reading and writing . . .

but also because it reduces them to silence . . . and thus to a lack of

citizenship.61

While the ATD was perhaps the most vehement defender of literacy as a basic human right, many other voluntary organizations have engaged in the discourse of civic literacy. Among these was the French Reading

Association (AFL) which is made up of teachers, researchers, librarians,

parents, and activists whose goal is to take reading beyond the schools

(descolariser la lecture). Although much of the association's effort is di

rected toward producing learning materials (including a popular soft ware known as ELMO), AFL leader Jean Foucambert also expressed the

doctrine of civic literacy in his statement: "The number of those who

engage in reading reflects the state of democratic life in a country."62 Obviously influenced by the work of the AFL, the ATD, and other vol

untary associations, the authors of the 1984 report Des illettres en France

also discuss reading as a socially constructed act that is essential to the

full exercise of citizenship. Implying a need for what Paulo Freire would

describe as "critical literacy," they state that "to learn to read is to be a

'questioner of writing' . . .

Reading [which] is essentially a social activity . . .

represents an

important challenge in democratic life."63 They fur

ther conclude that "an effective reader experiences the sentiment of be

longing to a community: he is conscious of his own power in the social

arena and through this accedes to more and more extensive knowl

edge." 64

Although voluntary associations such as the ATD were instrumental in

bringing the discourse of civic literacy to the public forum by calling at

tention to the needs of the illiterate, the tenet that all citizens have a



483

light to literacy is one of the implicit foundations of the French repub lic. Nonetheless, after studies commissioned by the interministerial com

mittee (GPLI) revealed that as many as one in five adults have some

difficulty in either reading or writing, government agencies have been moved to reemphasize the responsibilities of the state to all of its citi

zens.65 For example, the Ministry of Culture commissioned the prepara tion of a 1989 report entitled Le droit du livre. In its December 1990

newsletter, the GPLI sought to reaffirm and make explicit the govern ment's role by publishing the preamble to the Universal Declaration of

the Rights of Man, which states in Article 26: "Everyone has the right to

education. Education should be free, at least at the basic and elementary level."66

While access to education has long been considered a primary respon

sibility of the French state, the principle of government support to en

sure equality in access to culture is closely linked to the history of the

Ministry of Culture, which was created in 1959. The initial charge to the

Ministry was: "To make accessible the great works of humanity, starting with those of France, ... to insure the widest audience of our national

cultural heritage, and to promote the creation of works of art . . . "67

However, in more recent decades the issue of validating popular culture

and regional traditions became a part of the debate surrounding the work of the ministry. As the Socialist government sought to move away from exclusive preoccupation with "high culture" or "la culture cul

tivee," a new strategy evolved that was characterized by decentralization, relativism, and multiculturalism ("cultures au pluriel et au quoti dien").68 Evelyne Pisier (who was appointed director of the DLL in 1989

by the Socialist Minister of Culture, Jack Lang) expressed this point'of view, noting that in ignoring popular culture, the dominant culture loses view of the universal, and thus "isolates itself, turns inward on the pre tension of self-sufficiency, becomes stunted, loses its creativity, its imagi

nation, its life-force."69 Pisier also characterized books as an antidote to

cultural conformity, stating that reading contributes to social integration by encouraging autonomy, independence, and creativity. Also aware of the paradoxical role of reading in fostering a sense of belonging as well as a spirit of individualism, Jack Lang wrote "the book can offer each one a unique chance to understand himself and to understand oth ers."70 A similar idea was expressed by Pisier who concludes that "in be

coming part of a community, one becomes more oneself."71 The contemporary discourse on literacy, reading, and culture is in

many ways closely linked to the humanistic beliefs underlying the volun teer movement that created the Bibliotheques pour tous. However, new issues emerge relating to the role of the state. When Evelyne Pisier as serts: "Culture is a human right, a right of all citizens. The right to read




is an essential aspect of that right," she adds a new dimension to the

discourse on culture and literacy by affirming that access to books and

other forms of cultural expression should not be a luxury limited to the

elite but a fundamental right guaranteed to all.72 While acknowledging the importance of "listening" to the poor and validating "la culture

populaire," she nonetheless sees the final goal as "putting within the

reach of the illiterate the possibility of reading that which is the greatest and most noble."73

The issues of high culture, cultural relativism, and the diverse uses of

reading have also been a part of what could be characterized as the "in

tellectual discourse on literacy." Articulated by writers such as Martine

Poulain, this intellectual discourse seeks to counter the media's simplis tic portrayals of illiteracy as a "horrible catastrophe," a "national

scourge," or an illness in need of a "cure."74 Olivier Mongin and Joel Roman likewise stress that neither aliteracy (non-lecture) nor illiteracy can be thought of as monolithic phenomena, but instead must be ana

lyzed in regard to individual histories, circumstances, and preferences.75 Themes relating to the social dimensions of literacy are also explored by the historian, Roger Chartier who states:

The essential but oversimplified separation of the literate from the

illiterate does not exhaust the full range of differences in the read

er's relation to writing. . . . There are

equally great differences be

tween the norms and conventions of reading that define, for each

community of readers, legitimate uses of the book, ways to read

and the instruments and methods of interpretations. ...

Expecta

tions and interests, which govern practices, determine the way in

which texts can be read and be read differentiy by readers who do

not have the same intellectual baggage or the same relationship with the written word.76

Although most of Chartier's work is focused on historical topics, these

same issues in contemporary France have been explored by sociologists such as Joelle Bahloul, who studied marginal readers, Michel Peroni,

who looked at reading itineraries of workers and prisoners, and Nicole

Robine who investigated reading practices among young workers.77 Li

brarians have also been influenced by these studies which focus on read

ers who are usually not library users. An article discussing implications of

Nicole Robine's study was published by the DLL in Bibliotheques publiques et illettrisme, and summaries of the work by Peroni and Bahloul were pub lished in a collection of essays entitled Pour une sociologie de la lecturey

edited by Martine Poulain.78 A monograph series issued by the Bib

liotheque Publique dTnformation also featured sociological studies con



485

ducted by Bahloul and Peroni as well as a very influential historical work

entitled Discours sur la lecture (1880-1980) by Anne-Marie Chartier and

Jean Hebrard.79

The intellectual discourse on literacy which places it within the

broader framework of reading practices has also had an influence on

efforts of a practical nature. For example, in the foreword to Retour a la

lecture (Return to Reading), a literacy training manual sponsored by the

GPLI, Claudie Tabet writes:

It seems to me urgent and indispensable, in the context of the

struggle against illiteracy, to evoke all the aspects [of the subject] so that a collective reflection can be started or pursued. This in

quiry is based on certain currents of sociological thought (P. Bor

dieu, J-C. Passeron, B. Seibel, N. Robine) and historical thought

(Jean Hebrard, Roger Chartier) and also on sociopolitical and

pedagogic work that unites theory with practice, such as that done

by the Association Francaise pour la Lecture [French Reading As

sociation]. Without these theoretical contributions which have a

certain number of implications for work in the field, we run the risk of rigidity and of confining ourselves to amateurism [brico

lage].80

By bringing ideas of social theorists, sociologists, and historians into the world of practice, Claudie Tabet draws on the French tradition of the

"general intellectual, who, regardless of his or her discipline, is ex

pected to contribute to the national public culture."81 In describing this

tradition, Steven Seidman, an American sociologist, notes that unlike their American counterparts who are read primarily by those in their dis

cipline, French intellectuals are not expected "to separate scholarship

and partisanship, or to disjoin knowledge, politics and ethics." He fur ther comments, "The public intellectual draws on scholarly learning in order to engage current social developments in an original and provoca tive way."82 Within the contemporary French literacy movement recog nition of the role that social theory and empirical research can have on

shaping practice and policy is clearly evident in publications from vol

untary associations as well as in those issued by government agencies such as the GPLI.83

This integration of a scholarly perspective into social action has even characterized some of the work of the ATD-Quart Monde, despite the fact that certain ATD publications feature a well-known quote from Fa ther Wresinski stating: "The whole [movement] is born from a shared

life, never from theory."84 One example of the role of intellectuals in the ATD debates is seen in a special 1990 issue of the journal Quart




Monde which featured an article on illiteracy and equal dignity by two

editors of Esprit, Olivier Mongin and Joel Roman, as well an article on

oral and written language by Laurence Lentin, a professor of linguistics from the New Sorbonne (Paris II), and a speech by the director of the

DLL, Evelyne Pisier, who holds a doctorate and has taught at the Institut

des Sciences Politiques.85 In a similar fashion, the French Reading Asso

ciation (AFL) invited noted sociologist Jean-Claude Passeron to address

a conference whose proceedings were later published in the AFL jour nal, Actes de lectured

Another feature of the French literacy movement has been the cre

ation of research-oriented nonprofit organizations such as the Associa

tion du Centre d'Etudes et de Realization pour l'Education Permanente

(Association of the Reserach Center for the Implementation of Continu

ing Education?ACEREP) which contributed to the 1986 DLL publica tion, Bibliotheques publiques et illettrisme. While not administratively part of

an academic institution, some of these groups do draw their support from universities. One example is the Association de Recherche et

d'Action autour de la Lecture et de l'Ecriture (Association for Research

and Action related to Reading and Writing?ARALE), founded in 1989

at the University Pierre Mendes France in Grenoble. Although operat

ing without paid staff or office space, ARALE was able to sponsor collo

quia at the university that included speeches by high-level university administrators as well as

bringing together researchers, teachers, and

practitioners. Yvonne Johannot, the president and founder, expressed

ARALE's commitment to an interdisciplinary study of illiteracy that

would bring together findings from sociology, history, semiology, linguis tics, and economics; she notes that "the transformations which have in

tervened in our relationship to writing can not leave any discipline in

the human sciences indifferent."87

The transformed role of reading is also a significant theme articulated

by those scholars working on the history of libraries and print culture. In

the 1989 article in Esprit, Martine Poulain observes that present concern

over illiteracy may be a prelude to new definitions of literacy, and there

fore our perception of illiteracy "exists because of the need to put in

place new

competencies: what we are now attempting

to measure is not

so much ... a renewed outbreak of illiteracy as the diversity and inequal

ity of the capacity to read and write . . . "88 Developing the theme of new

competencies in their historical study of reading since 1880, Anne-Marie

Chartier and Jean Hebrard suggest the emergence of a "modern"

model of reading that incorporates older, somewhat contradictory mod

els. In their view "the new norm" demands that one "read for informa

tion and training, . . . for pleasure,

for self-instruction and for



487

recreation; [it is necessary] to simultaneously read widely and to read

intensively, to read quickly and to read carefully."89

Literacy, Equality and Community

As a result of the contemporary literacy movement in France, two key issues have gained prominence. First is the public recognition that the

provision of schools does not in itself guarantee that everyone will mas

ter the multiple and complex reading skills suggested above. Secondly, there has been a growing realization that such skills are essential to citi

zens' full participation in the economic, cultural and political life of the

community. Although the literacy movement did not coalesce until the

1980s, voluntary associations and intellectuals involved in promoting

reading could draw on a significant body of historical work and social

theory offering a critical assessment of the role of education in modern

society. Among the leading theorists was Michel Foucault who, in his

1970 inaugural speech at the College de France, clearly portrayed the

political nature of schooling:

Education can scarcely be, by rights, the instrument through which an individual, in a society such as ours, can have access to all kinds of discourse. . . . All systems of education are a political means of

maintaining or modifying the appropriation of discourse, along with the knowledge and the power that this conveys.90

In France the discourse relating to literacy, equality, and full participa tion in the community was profoundly modified through the work of

voluntary associations which forced the government to reassess its role and challenged intellectuals to seek a broader understanding of the so cial and cultural dimensions of literacy and reading practices.

Although a brief overview such as this cannot do justice to the complexity and diversity of the French literacy movement, it can suggest the essential role that voluntary associations have played both in defining the discourse on illiteracy and in operating programs at the grassroots level. Because of the strong reciprocal relationships among the state, voluntary associations, and members of the intellectual community, the French literacy movement is characterized by a continuing interplay between theory and practice,

which has, in turn, influenced all professionals concerned with

reading?including librarians. While those public librarians active in the

literacy movement have found their personal and professional lives trans

formed, their efforts and ideas have also contributed to the movement. In addition to those who work with groups like the ATD to provide books and services to new readers, a few librarians have also contributed to

publica




tions that call into question long-held assumptions and suggest new ways of

thinking about literacy and reading.

Notes

1. Roger A. Lohman, The Commons: New Perspectives on

Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1992) 10. Lohman draws the last

part of this definition from J. L. Fisher, "The Growth of Heartlessness: the Need

for Studies on Philanthropy," Educational Record 67 (1983): 25-28. 2. Quoted in Marie-Francoise Lanfant, "Voluntary Action in France," Jour

nal of Voluntary Action Research 5(1976): 195. 3. Ibid., 203.

4. Yves Alix and Michel P. Schmitt, "Les mouvements associatifs et mili

tants," in Martine Poulain, ed., Histoire des bibliotheques frangaises, Vol. 4, Les bib

liotheques au XX* siecle, 1914-1990 (Paris: Promodis?Cerle de la Librairie, 1992) 329.

5. Gabriel Henriot, Des livres pour tous (Paris: Editions Durassie, 1943), 4.

6. Alix and Schmitt, "Les mouvements associatifs et militants," 322.

7. Noe Richter, La lecture et ses institutions, 1919-1989 (Le Mans: Editions

Plein Chant/Universite de Maine, 1989), 88. 8. Alix and Schmitt, "Les mouvements associatifs et militants," 322.

9. Claudie Tabet, "Les bibliotheques d'un autre type: le 'tiers reseau,'" Bul

letin des Bibliotheques de France 37 (No. 4, 1992): 36. A more detailed discussion of these libraries can be found in Francoise Bobin and Christine Bouvier, La lecture

en entreprise: Les bibliotheques de comites d'entreprise (Paris: Direction du Livre et de la Lecture, 1991).

10. Tabet, "Les bibliotheques d'un autre type," 3.

11. Ibid., 39, for statistics on workplace libraries; statistics on municipal librar

ies are drawn from Anne-Marie Bertrand, "Les bibliotheques municipales dans

les annees 80: un developpement spectaculaire, mais inacheve," Bulletin des Bib

liotheques de France 37 (No. 4, 1992): 16. 12; Ibid. 13. Bobin and Bouvier, La lecture en

entreprise, 39.

14. Ibid., 68-69.

15. Leslie J. Limage, "Adult Literacy Policy in Industrialized Countries," Com

parative Education Review 30 (1986): 51. Limage especially draws on the work of Francois Furet and Jacques Ozouf, Lire et ecrire (Paris, Editions Minuit, 1977).

16. Martine Poulain, "L'illettrisme: fausses querelles etvraies questions," Es

prit 154 (September 1989): 47. 17. Ibid. 18. Pierre Freynet, "La mise en place de la lutte contre rillettrisme: Une nais

sance difficile," Convergence 19 (1986): 54. 19. Quoted in Jean-Pierre Velis, La France illettree (Paris: Editions du Seuil,

1988), 249. 20. Veronique Esperandieu, Antoine Lion, and Jean-Pierre Benichou, Des il

lettres en France (Paris: La Documentation francaise, Collection des rapports offi

ciels, Janvier 1984), 11. 21. "Enquete," in Bibliotheques publiques et illettrisme, Pratiques 1989 (Paris: Di

rection du Livre et de la Lecture, 1989) 10.



489

22. Jona M. Rosenfeld, Emerger de la grande pauvrete (Paris: Editions Science et

Service Quart Monde, 1989), 14.

23. Anna Franco, "L'utilisation du livre illustre en milieu sous-proletaire: Ex

perience d'une bibliotheque de rue" (Paris: Memoire de Maitrise, presented at the Universite de la Sorbonne Nouvelle, 1981).

24. Dominique Layat, "Le livre en lutte contre l'exclusion: 'lecture et biblio

theques de rue' a Besancon" (Villeurbanne: Memoire d'etude submitted to the

Ecole Nationale Superieure des Sciences de 1'Information et des Bibliotheques,

1992), 19. 25. Claude Ferrand, "Preface," in Jacqueline Chabaud, ed., Les clubs du savoir

et de solidarite (Paris: Editions Science et Service Quart Monde, 1990), 7-8. 26. Claire Fondet, Vaincre I'illettrisme. (Paris: Editions Science et Service Quart

Monde, 1990), 24.

27. Ibid., 41. There are no references to the work of Frank Laubach in the

ATD literature, although this slogan is very similar to Laubach's well-known

motto, "Each one teach one." None of the literacy providers interviewed in

France in 1993 were familiar with the Laubach method. 28. Ibid., 27.

29. Ibid., 11.

30. Claude Ferrand, "Preface," in Fondet, Vaincre I'illettrisme, viii-ix.

31. A.T.D. Quart Monde Livre Blanc (Paris: ATD Quart Monde, 1989) 36. 32. Ferrand, "Preface," vii-ix.

33. Fondet, Vaincre I'illettrisme, 24.

34. Francoise Alptuna, "Qu'est-ce que-ce les Bibliotheques de rue," A.B.F.

Bulletin d'Informations 111 (2nd trimester 1981): 25. 35. Franco, "L'utilization du livre," 85.

36. Alptuna, "Bibliotheques de rue," 25.

37. Franco, "L'utilization du livre," 85.

38. Ibid., 87-88.

39. Ibid., 104.

40. Ibid., 21.

41. Ibid., 85.

42. "Cretil," in Bibliotheques publiques et illettrisme (Paris: Direction du Livre et de la Lecture, 1986) 53.

43. Tabet, "Les bibliotheques d'un autre type," 45.

44. Layat, "Le livre en lutte contre l'exclusion," 36.

45. Ibid., 70.

46. Ibid., 23.

47. Michel Chourin, "Education et culture," Sociales Informations 81 (1984). This article provides additional information on the early years of the literacy movement.

48. Danielle Colombel, "Intervention de Danielle Colombel," unpublished

paper preseted at a conference entided, "Adult Literacy: An International Ur

ban Perspective," held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, 3-6

August 1992. 49. Tabet, "Les bibliotheques d'un autre type," 45.

50. Bertrand, "Les bibliotheques municipales," 13.

51. Olivier Donnat and Denis Cogneau, Les pratiques culturelles des Francais, 1973-1989 (Paris: La Decouverte/La Documentation Francaise. This study

was

commissioned by the Ministry of Culture and Communication.




52. Nicole Robine, "Les obstacles a la frequentation des bibliotheques chez

lesjeunes travailleurs," in Bibliotheques publiques et illettrisme (Paris: Direction du Livre et de la Lecture, 1986) 32.

53. "La bibliotheque municipale de Bobigny et A.C.E.R.E.P." in Bibliotheques

publiques, et Illettrisme (Paris: Direction du Livre et de la Lecture, 1986) 49 (em phasis added).

54. For a discussion of taking books to poor families (colportage du livre, lit

erally "book peddling"), see Janine Bechet, "Le livre ouvre les portes," Quart

Monde 136 (3rd trimester, 1990): 9-17. 55. Tabet, "Les bibliotheques d'un autre type," 45; also see Layat, "Le livre

en lutte contre l'exclusion," 22, 77-78.

56. Evelyne Pisier, "Le combat contre rillettrisme est un combat pour la

democratic," Quart Monde 136 (3rd trimester, 1990): 40. 57. Henriot, Des livres pour tous, 5.

58. Alix and Schmitt, "Les mouvements associatifs et militants," 329.

59. Les actions culturelles du mouvement ATD Quart Monde, (brochure dated

March 1992, n. p.).

60. Jean-Marie Anglade, Les droits de I'homme a Vepreuve de la grande pauvrete

(Paris, Editions Science et Service Quart Monde, 1987), 8 (emphasis in the origi nal).

61. Ferand, "Preface," viii-ix.

62. Quoted in Velis, La France illettree, 251.

63. Esperandieu, Lion, and Benichou, Des illettres en France, 50.

64. Ibid., 55.

65. "LTllettrisme: un phenomene d'ampleur

en France: resultats de

l'enquete," (infometrie du GPLI) Lettres 23 (January-February 1989): 3-5. 66. Bernard Pingaud, Le droit de lire: Pour une politique coordonnee du developpe

ment de la lecture (Paris: Direction du Livre et de la Lecture, 1989) and "Decla

ration universelle des droits de I'homme, Preamble," En Toutes Lettres 12

(December 1990): 2. 67. Robert Wangermee, La politique culturelle de la France, Rapport du Groupe

d'Experts Europeens (Paris: Documentation francaise, 1988), 29.

68. Ibid., 45.

69. Pisier, "Le combat contre rillettrisme," 40.

70. A press conference with Jack Lang in 1990 is quoted in "Vers de nou

veaux publics: Le livre et la Lecture," Lettre d'Information, Ministere de la Culture,

300 (25 March 1991) supplement, n. p. 71. Pisier, "Le combat contre rillettrisme," 41.

72. Ibid. 73. Ibid., 42.

74. Poulain, "L'illettrisme: fausses querelles," 49.

75. Olivier Mongin and Joel Roman, "Illettrisme et egale dignite," Quart Monde 136 (3rd trimester, 1990): 21.

76. Roger Chartier, The Order of Books: Readers, Authors and Libraries in Europe

between the Fourteenth and Eighteenth Centuries (Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University

Press, 1994), 4.

77. Joelle Bahloul, Lectures precaires: Etude sociologique sur les faibles lecteurs

(Paris: Bibliotheque Publique d'Information, Centre Georges Pompidou, 1988); Michel Peroni, Histoires de lire; Lecture etparcours biographique (Paris: Bibliotheque

Publique dTnformation, Centre Georges Pompidou, 1990); and Nicole Robine,

Lesjeunes travailleurs et la lecture (Paris: Documentation francaise, 1984).



491

78. Martine Poulain, ed., Pour une sociologie de la lecture: Lectures et lecteurs dans

la France contemporaine (Paris: Cercle de la Librairie, 1988); the article by Robine is cited in note 52 above.

79. Anne-Marie Chartier and Jean Hebrard, Discours sur la lecture (1880-1980)

(Paris: Bibliotheque Publique d'lnformation, Centre Georges Pompidou, 1989); see note 77 for full citations of the other studies mentioned in the text.

80. Claudie Tabet, "Avant-propos," in B. Gillardin and C. Tabet, Retour a la

lecture: Lutte contre I'illettrisme, Guide pour la formation (Paris: Editions Retz, 1988). 81. Steven Seidman, Contested Knowledge: Social Theory in the Postmodern Era

(Oxford, UK Blackwell, 1994): 194. 82. Ibid., 194-195.

83. GPLI has commissioned, published, and at least partially subsidized a

number of research studies. One relevant example is a regional study of volun

teers and literacy efforts in Bourgogne carried out at the request of GPLI by Jean

Danrey who at that time held research appointments at CNRS and at the Uni

versity of Dijon. Although initiated by GPLI, the study was financed by the Del

egation a la Formation Professionelle.

84. Les actions culturelles du mouvement ATD Quart Monde, (brochure dated

Mars 1992, n. p.).

85. Laurence Lentin, "La fonction-langage: Une approche du langage oral et

ecrit," Quart Monde 136 (3rd trimester, 1990): 33-38; for full citations to the ar ticle by Mongin and Roman, see note 75; for the article by Pisier, see note 56.

86. Velis, La France illettree, 251.

87. Yvonne Johannot, "Illetrisme et psychanalyse," L'Immediat, Bulletin

d'information de Mediat Rhone-Alpes, 10 (1992): 5. 88. Poulain, "L'illettrisme: fausses querelles," 58.

89. Chartier and Hebrard, Discours sur la lecture (1880-1980), 510.

90. Quoted in Velis, La France illettree, 253.



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