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On June 3, 1957 (coincidentally Allen Ginsberg's birthday), Shig Murao was arrested for selling an "obscene" book to an undercover police officer. The book was HOWL and Other Poems by Allen Ginsberg, and according to Captain Hanrahan of the SFPD, was only the first in a long list of books the department had deemed objectionable. Lawrence Ferlinghetti was arrested for having published the book shortly thereafter, and the trial that ensued was among the defining battles of the free speech movement.

The Beat Museum celebrateS the legacy of Shig Murao, “the enigmatic soul of City Lights and the San Francisco Beat scene” on the day of his infamous arrest, and Allen Ginsberg’s birthday.

Event info: www.kerouac.com/events/

Hosted by Richard Reynolds
More info about Shig: ShigMurao.com

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Articles about Shig Murao on Discover Nikkei:

In Search of Shigeyoshi Murao
By Patricia Wakida

Shig Murao: A Samurai Family (1920)
By Richard Reynolds