Prison libraries in Italy

After a long period of disorganisation and threats of closure, the 1990s saw the launch of practical initiatives and theoretical debates in libraries in Italian prisons, taking into account the guidelines laid down by international organisations. This was largely due to the efforts of the Italian Libraries Association (AIB) and Association of Prison Libraries (ABC), founded in 2000. While such libraries are currently enjoying a period of unprecedented development, including integration into the public libraries network and expansion throughout Italy, they nonetheless still require a normative, institutional framework to achieve stability once and for all.
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