By Addison Gernenz | Intern
One of the libraries my family frequented during my childhood had creaky wooden floors and a “Winnie-the-Pooh” mural painted in the children’s area. The checkout desk was circular and towered over my head. I would have to stand on the very tips of my toes to hand the librarian the stack of books I had selected for the week so she could stamp them with the return date and hand them back.
As an introverted, homeschooled child in the middle of a large family, reading has always been an escape for me. Whether it be “The Boxcar Children,” “Nancy Drew,” “Encyclopedia Brown,” “A to Z Mysteries” or every Dorling Kindersley book shelved in the library, I consumed books voraciously.
Libraries were an outlet for my literary appetite and my endless imagination.
Frederick Douglass once said, “Once you learn to read, you will be forever free.” Whenever I walked into a new library as a child, I fully embodied this quote. In my lifetime, I have been a member of nine libraries, and each one has brought new freedom.
However, libraries are more than just books. An article published by The Guardian argues that beyond books, libraries are about social equity.
“It’s a refuge where people, especially those who are homeless or live in overcrowded housing, can find shelter, company, a place to rest and use the bathroom,” it reads. “When vast tracts of our towns and cities are controlled by commercial operators, a library offers a rare neutral space for people to meet.”
Libraries are also foundational for communities. My favorite library in high school would hold ESL classes multiple times a week. In addition, libraries are frequently used as locations for voting polls, tutoring or even events specifically for young moms and their children.
Libraries are essential to a thriving community. They present an affordable way for individuals to read the books they desire without the associated costs.
And yet, libraries are radical in the age we live in. They do not throw subscription plans in your face when you walk through the door. In fact, they may be one of the last indoor places in America you can go without having to spend money, without people yelling or trying to sell you something. Libraries fight against the declining reading scores sweeping America. They fight against the spread of misinformation and the societal shift toward isolation.
If public libraries disappeared tomorrow, the world would lose more than books and programs. We would lose one of the rare places where people of different backgrounds can exist on an equal platform, outside of financial or societal barriers. We would lose access to free information and a space where communities can flourish.
Libraries were foundational to my childhood, whether I was hiding in a corner and reading “The Hunger Games” before I was allowed to, learning to make “moon sand” with my siblings during an early morning children’s event or using a nonfiction picture book as a guide for ballet positions between bookshelves. A building full of free books is a blessing we take advantage of.
Support your local public library; it may just change your life.
