Fifty years ago, on October 3, Judge Clayton Horn ruled that Allen Ginsberg's great epic Beat-era poem HOWL was not obscene but instead, a work of literary and social merit. This ruling allowed for the publication of HOWL and exonerated the poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti, who faced jail time and a fine 50 years ago for publishing "HOWL."

Fifty years later, with draconian FCC fines for language infractions, you still can't hear HOWL on the radio. That's something to howl about. This October 3, WBAI and Pacifica Radio Network invite you to join our commemoration of Judge Horn’s ruling on behalf of free speech, by listening to a recording of the poet Allen Ginsberg, himself, reading the unadulterated HOWL.

The commemoration of HOWL will also be led Lawrence Ferlingetti, poet Bob Holman of the Bowery Poetry Club, first amendment lawyer Ron Collins, Beat Generation scholar and filmmaker Regina Weinreich, WBAI's Program Director Bernard White and WBAI Arts Director Janet Coleman, who will discuss the relevance of the poem to language censorship in broadcast media today. Allen Ginsberg's reading of HOWL is copyrighted and used by permission of Fantasy Records. From "Howls, Raps & Roars: Recordings from the San Francisco Poetry Renaissance" (produced by Bill Belmont; Fantasy, 1993). Occasional musical background from "Pull My Daisy and Other Jazz Classics" by the David Amram Quartet.

With thanks for the generous efforts of John Crigler, Barney and Astrid Rossett, Hettie Jones, David Dozer, Chante Mouton, and Jon Almeleh, Nathan Moore, Ursula Ruedenberg and Pete Korakis of Pacifica.

You can read the full text of HOWL here. Feel free to follow along with Ginsberg's reading.