Libraries change lives (join the Salinas read-in April 2-3!)

I just came from a conference about multicultural and international children's literature where I heard speaker after speaker, renowned authors all, relate stories of the difference public libraries made in their lives as they were growing up. Each speaker had in common a feeling in childhood that they were in some way outsiders. Each eventually found the miracle of a library where they were welcomed and their loneliness banished, at least while they could immerse themselves in stories. The books they read connected them to other people and places, and showed them they were not alone.

more below...

Kossacks know how critical it is that we educate our young'uns in the face of the ignorant fear-mongering that passes for much of public discourse in our country today. Engaging kids with books they can love is the way to ensure they learn to read and read to learn. To quote journalist William Ecenbarger recently writing in the Christian Science Monitor : "If anything, we ought to be increasing library hours and services. This is no time to be locking up the books." That's why closing libraries is such a cultural and political disaster.

This is a shout-out for people in California to join Global Exchange, the United Farm Workers of America, CodePink: Women for Peace, and Vote! the Citizenship Project, in Salinas on the weekend of April 2-3 for a "read-in" in support of the endangered public library, culminating on Sunday with the yearly Cesar Chavez Holiday march celebration. You can read more about it here.

How did it come to pass that the Salinas Public Library is about to close its doors? As Ecenbarger explained:

At the root of the problem is a kind of indifference bordering on neglect on the part of library patrons, and a kind of neglect bordering on negligence on the part of public officials. There is hardly anyone who is against libraries. Rather, library budgets are being cut or restrained almost by default to fund other, more tangible services. No one's life is in danger because they can't get their hands on one of Shakespeare's plays, and so libraries are often undervalued by local officials bent on preserving "essential services."

The solution? Ecenbarger again:

The best way to build community political support is with tax revenues and borrowing plans specifically linked to libraries. But the ultimate responsibility lies with those who use and love libraries to lend personal support and to pressure elected representatives to provide adequate money for them.

More than ever today, libraries and librarians save kids' lives. Those of us who order books from Amazon or wherever all the time, may not know what it's like to not have books in your home. Imagine growing up with no books in your home, parents too poor to buy a book and too exhausted to read one anyway. The books in a public library can still be borrowed for free! Librarians read stories to -- I don't know how many -- zillions of little kids every day. Libraries provide a haven of reading and learning for millions more every year. Libraries and librarians provide safe places to stay after school. They teach kids how to research their homework. They teach parents how to speak English. They are often the only place a kid can get access to a computer.

All this is to say, there are compelling reasons why we should support libraries as a necessity, not as a frill. School libraries are almost non-existent in states where education budgets have been cut to the bone. In my town of San Francisco, there are only two qualified librarians serving in the 60-some-odd public elementary schools. Luckily we have a pretty good public library system to fill the gap. Salinas is not so lucky.

So remember the library the next time you want something to read. Then try to make it to Salinas, lend your support!

And pass the word.