#library stuff

Meanwhile Librarians when books get grabbed out of their displays:

the library is a space where generations collide for a singular interest

the library is a central space in the community

Patron 1: "Oh priestess of the books, I am but a lowly worm in your holy presence. I loathe to take the space within your eyesight, though I must."

Me: "Oh, don't worry about it. How can I help you?"

Patron 1: "But it pains me greatly to divert you from thy divine tasks."

Me: "I am literally paid to help you here. That is literally my job."

You’ve been following the news about book bans, funding cuts, Moms for Liberty, censorship, and you’re outraged! You want to Do Something! What should you do? 

Here are some tips from a small-town public library worker. Some of this is stuff I’ve seen a lot of other people saying, but some isn’t. 

DISCLAIMER: Every library has different needs, policies, funding situations, etc. What I’m saying may not apply to your local branch. Ask your local library staff. 

THINGS THAT HELP A LOT: 

Use your library. Really, just using it helps a lot. Check out books. Download ebooks on Libby. Listen to audiobooks. Come to programs. Stream movies on Kanopy. Join the book club. Bring your kids to storytime. Help spread the word about library services and events (we don’t have an advertising budget). Not only do we rely on usage statistics to justify our funding, but also, robust attendance makes the library feel more like part of the community. 

Check out controversial/challenged books. Popularity affects whether it stays on the shelves. Ask the staff to order certain titles. Show demand for these books!

Give us some money. Just fork over some cash. Go to the online donation portal. Write a check if you’re feeling fancy. We rely on donation money for everything from cleaning supplies to prizes. Participate in library fundraisers. If there’s a friends of the library group, join that. If your library posts a wishlist, go shopping. 

Contact your local elected people and tell them you want libraries uncensored and well-funded. Invoke your identities that politicians care about. “As a constituent,” “as a voter,” “as a taxpayer.” Be specific about what you want the remedy to be. If the issue is censorship, say you want libraries to have free and uncensored material for all. If the issue is resources, say you want to increase library funding. If you say “The library should be open longer hours,” you and I might interpret that to mean that the solution is to fund the library to be open more hours. But politicians and their staff do not think like you and I do. To them, “The library should be open longer hours” may mean “The library is unpopular and not meeting people’s needs, so let’s defund it.” 

EXTRA CREDIT IF YOU WANT TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND: Apply to serve on your local library board.

THINGS THAT MIGHT HELP, BUT NOT AS MUCH AS PEOPLE THINK. Again, this is going to vary wildly based on your particular public library branch. At some libraries, these things might help a whole lot! At other libraries, not so much. 

Donating books. Some libraries don’t even take donated books. Most libraries put donated books in their book sale, or put them out for swaps. Very few donated books end up catalogued for circulation. Donating banned books really does nothing – if a library is ordered to remove a book from their shelves, they won’t be allowed to re-add a donated copy, either. Our library sometimes catalogues donated books if they are new (published within the past ~5 years) and in like-new condition. Your childhood favorites are not “in good condition,” I’m sorry. 

Volunteering. Again, this is going to vary widely from library to library. Some libraries rely heavily on volunteers. Some libraries don’t let anyone volunteer at all. My library requires volunteers to go through a criminal background check first (I loathe this policy with the fire of a thousand suns, but have been unable to persuade my boss to change it). Even if you are allowed to volunteer, don’t be surprised if the tasks you’re assigned look more like “clean the bathrooms” than like “read aloud to a roomful of rapt children” or “comb through archives.” Most libraries don’t let volunteers do circulation tasks, and there are very good reasons for that. And for Pete’s sake, don’t offer to “volunteer” to do someone’s actual paid job. 

I’m not saying “Don’t donate used books and don’t volunteer”; I’m saying “The well-meaning viral posts about how you can save your local library by donating used books and volunteering are missing a lot.”