Libraries Are Essential Public Goods

Why It's Time To Speak Up For Our Libraries
Huffington Post: 11.15.2011 by Andrew Losowsky

Libraries are essential public goods.

Like our public parks and museums, public libraries are free, non-commercial gathering places for everyone, regardless of income. If information is power, then libraries are the essence of democracy and freedom. In these times of economic difficulty, more people are using them than ever, to do more than merely check out books.

Yet our nation's public libraries appear to be under threat by a litany of cuts, forced upon them by state and local committees, cuts that often began before the recent economic downturn. In a survey conducted by the Library Journal, 93% of large libraries reported having laid off staff, cut their opening hours, or both. In several states, including Indiana and Michigan, library branches have permanently closed their doors.

In a new Huffington Post series called Libraries In Crisis, we'll be looking at how today's libraries are about more than books. We'll show how they can be a community resource where reliable information and guidance is provided, free of bias and commercial influence.

This occasional series will look at the economic reasons for the current situation, and its consequences throughout the country. It will showcase models for library evolution, and hear from prominent voices about what makes a viable and vital library system. READ MORE !

Read the first piece in this series, "The Death Of The Public Library?"

SAVE CALIFORNIA PUBLIC LIBRARY FUNDING ! - Let-Them-Eat-Cake-Attitude Threatens to Destroy a Network of Public Assets

Let-Them-Eat-Cake-Attitude Threatens to Destroy a Network of Public Assets
Huffington Post: 2.15.11 by Scott Turow (President, Authors Guild)

While our economy seems to be slowly staggering back to its feet, state and municipal governments remain hard-hit as the result of lost tax revenues, lost stimulus money and pension fund payments that have grown to monstrous size to make up for the market losses of 2007 and 2008. Those governments are cutting everywhere they can and public libraries nationwide have been one of the biggest and least deserved losers in the process.

Widespread public access to knowledge, like public education, is one of the pillars of our democracy, a guarantee that we can maintain a well-informed citizenry.

But libraries seem to be losing out in the funding battles, due, in part, to the mistaken belief that they are somehow anachronistic in an age when so many Americans have instant computer access to information through the Internet. This is, frankly, a let-them-eat-cake-attitude that threatens to destroy a network of public assets that remains critical in our country.

Millions of Americans simply cannot afford to replace what libraries have traditionally offered for free -- access to books, computers and research assistance. Ironically, the importance of these services is even greater in a time of economic uncertainty.

For Americans facing job losses, working to gain new skills and seeking assistance in an increasingly digital world, U.S. public libraries are first responders. Two-thirds of libraries report they provide the only free access to computers and the Internet in their communities. Libraries function as crucial technology hubs, not merely for free Web access, but those who need computer training and assistance.

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For example, in California, Governor Brown's new proposed budget decreases General Fund assistance for public libraries by $30.4 million, eliminating the California Library Services Act, Public Library Foundation and the California Library Literacy and English Acquisition Services -- that is, access, resource sharing and adult literacy. In Texas, the cuts are even more stark, with the new budget proposing complete elimination of several programs that have either provided direct aid to libraries or irreplaceable programs, like those that created shared databases. Even in my own community, a small city on the northern edge of Chicago where a major university sits, my neighbors and I have been struggling to save a small branch library that was pivotal to the education of many neighborhood kids.

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I count myself as one of millions of Americans whose life simply would not be the same without the libraries that supported my learning. We cannot take that opportunity away from so many Americans who need that help urgently now. READ MORE !

TAKE ACTION: Support Museum & Library Services Act

URGENT

Support the Museum and Library Services Act S.3984 !

Call your Representative
Tell them to
Support the Museum & Library Services Act !Take Action !

CALL the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask to be transferred to your representative’s office. Tell their staffs that passing S. 3984, the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA), is imperative to ensuring libraries can continue providing critical resources to their constituents, particularly in this tough economy.

Specifically highlighting programs or resources your library provides to the member’s constituents will make your message stronger.

The U.S. Senate passed MLSA Reauthorization under unanimous consent late Tuesday night, bringing the bill one step closer to reauthorization before the end of the 111th Congress.

MLSA will ensure that the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds are secured and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is equipped to lead America’s libraries. This bill received bipartisan support from both Senate Republicans and Democrats, especially Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), who is a longtime supporter of libraries in this country. Other Senate sponsors of this bill include Sens. Richard Burr (R-NC), Thad Cochran (R-MS), Susan Collins (R-ME), Michael Enzi (R-WY), and Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Jon Tester (D-MT).

Access the full text of the bill S. 3984 here.

MLSA has moved to the U.S. House of Representatives where it must receive a vote before the end of the calendar year. Please call your representative and urge him or her to press House leadership for a vote on the Senate-passed version of MLSA and to support the bill.

Your calls are urgently needed TODAY. If the House does not pass this legislation in the next two weeks, the whole reauthorization process will have to start over after the first of the year.

Compose a Message Here and send by email.

Find Your Elected Officials @
~ including the president, members of Congress, governors, state legislators, and more.

Public libraries must be public, not profit machines

Public libraries must be public, not profit machines
Record: July 24, 2010 by Colleen Foster

What is a public library?

One "maintained for/used by the people of a community" or an entity "capitalized in shares of stock that can be traded on the open market?" A fair question since the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors recently released a Request for Proposals from private companies to manage operations of the Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library.

The goal of a public library is to improve quality of life by advancing literacy and a lifelong love of learning. The goal of a private company is to create profit for its owners or shareholders. In my opinion, these goals are fundamentally incompatible.

The board appears to be searching for a way to maintain quality service in our library system while saving money in these difficult times. The premise behind library privatization seems to be that the library is so inefficient in its operations that a company with a profit motive will be able to do more with less.

As the former director of the library, I know the many cost saving measures long in place at the library: cooperative cataloging of popular material, preprocessing of such material, major discounts from book jobbers, and shared cost of delivery with a multicounty library cooperative. There is not much room for increasing library efficiency without sacrificing quality of service.

The most substantial cost associated with running our library is staff salaries and benefits. Privatization is therefore almost certain to reduce the quality and quantity of our library staff. Librarians and library staff are the key to the high quality service upon which San Joaquin County residents have come to rely.

Libraries are not profitable, and they're not supposed to be. That's why we support them with our tax dollars - to ensure that they continue to make the betterment of all their main priority. America's public libraries are a cornerstone of our democracy and play an important part in our nation's commitment to public education.

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And why should any of our public monies, let alone 8 percent of the library's budget, go to the profits of a private company with a home office in Maryland? READ MORE !

Colleen Foster was the director of the Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library from 1994-2000.

Libraries - sign of community health

Libraries - sign of community health
Siskiyou Daily News: June 29, 2010 by Dr. Judy Broeckel

Health can be viewed as occuring at multiple levels. One could be a healthy individual, part of a healthy small unit like a family, and/or part of a healthy large unit like a nation.

In looking at big units/groups of people, some patterns emerge. Very poor nations/groups have a lot of certain types of health problems like parasites and starvation, and certain types of infections are more common.

Very wealthy nations/groups have the classic diseases that go with wealth: obesity, heart disease and cancer being examples.

The health of states or nations can be measured by more than just counting the number of people with certain diagnoses. Healthy states have vibrant economies, personal liberties, and busy, productive people.

One of the benchmarks of civilization is literacy. READ MORE !

. . . in other news:

Daily Kos: Finally! Someone goes after the Big Literacy Monopoly
Like me I suspect many of you are sick of public libraries and how they are constantly trying to improve communities, quality of life and literacy.

LosingLibraries.org - The Big (Awful) Picture
an effort to map and chronicle the full range of cuts, closings, and diminished library services nationally. From Library Journal in partnership with Mandy Knapp and Laura Solomon (responsible for SaveOhioLibraries.com).

Life Long Role of Libraries: Pre K - 20 & Beyond

Life Long Role of Libraries: Pre K - 20 & Beyond
from the Blue Skunk Blog by Doug Johnson
May 20, 2010

The Life-Long Role of Libraries

The journey of a student from pre-kindergarten through the K-12 educational system and either into the workforce or on to a higher education institution. Along the way, school, academic, and public libraries are all available to provide services to the student and parents in support of learning and information literacy. This graphic was developed after attendance at various P-20 meetings where it seemed important to show that libraries play an important role throughout the life of students and adults. Minnesota libraries collaborate in sharing services and resources. Once in the workforce, information continues to be available through the public library for lifelong learning and recreation activities.

From 19th Annual Minitex Interlibrary Loan Conference: May 4, 2010
. . . slide 15 of Minitex Update (pdf) - Bill DeJohn, Director

Minitex is a publicly supported network of academic, public, state government, and special libraries working cooperatively to improve library service for their users in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.

National Library Week 2010

National Library Week

Our Public Library Lifeline Is Fraying. We'll Be Sorry When it Snaps Huffington Post: April 11, 2010 by Art Brodksky

This is National Library Week, a time normally reserved for celebrating an institution that plays a vital role in many of our cities, towns and counties. Instead, many libraries, particularly public libraries, are being decimated by budget cuts at a time when library services are needed most.

Libraries, once considered a necessity, are now seen as a luxury. They are low-hanging fruit for budget pluckers, particularly at the state and local levels of government in communities across the country. It's been a slow death by attrition over the past couple of years. First, it was the budget for books and materials because, after all, books and materials aren't people. No matter that books and materials are what makes a library, well, a library. Then came the hours of operation, then the staff, then the closure of branches. No two communities are approaching the situation identically, but in cities from Boston to Indianapolis, the stories are increasingly dire.

In Boston, the trustees voted to close four branches. There was lots of protest, and Mayor Thomas Menino still has to make the final call, but the situation doesn't look good.

The Florida legislature is considering eliminating state aid to libraries entirely, while the New Jersey legislature is only looking a at a 74 percent cut. Indianapolis and surrounding Marion County are also looking at closing six branches and cutting back programs and staff.

In my home community of Montgomery County, Maryland, formerly one of the wealthiest local jurisdictions, the County Council is looking at a budget for fiscal year 2011 of $29 million - down from $40 million just three years ago. This year, it is slated for a 23 percent cut - one of the largest of any agency, on top of cuts in the last fiscal year with percentage decreases larger than all but one county agency. And this is for a county of about one million residents in which 70 percent hold library cards. It's even worse across the river, in Fairfax County, Virgina, where libraries were declared a "discretionary" service while cutting 30 of 54 full-time librarians. Libraries discretionary? That's nuts.

These are only some of the stories. They are being repeated endlessly across the country, perhaps even where you live. Some places put a high value on their libraries. Contrast the $29 million of my county for the $51 million library budget in Seattle, a city of about 600,000. Sure, Seattle needed to cut the library budget, but the fact that they started out much higher than my home says something about their priorities. Sadly, Seattle is the exception, not the rule. READ MORE !

Happy National Library Week

Save Our Libraries - Advocate ! ! !

Jeff Ackerman: Rescuing the written word
The Union: February 2, 2010

There should never have been a doubt. Time and time again ... just when I think you've been tapped out ... you deliver.

Knowing that, I was still blown away Thursday when the mailman dropped off a very large stack of envelopes filled with donations to our Save Our Libraries campaign we launched just 24 hours earlier.

Based on the letters and phone calls and comments we've gotten as the county continues to consider contracting our library operations to a private company, we got a pretty good sense that most of you were very passionately opposed to that notion.

As we've discussed, our libraries are facing some serious financial trouble and the county has been working feverishly to produce ways to keep the five branches open.

. . . . .
Why special treatment for the libraries? Why should The Union choose to help rescue the libraries when all around there are needs just as significant as keeping our libraries open?

Literacy. We have a vested interest in reading. We have a vested interest in the printed word.

Ours is an emotional connection. It's a natural one. The Doris Foley Library, for example, houses copies of The Union dating back to 1864 ... more than 145 years' worth.

. . . . .
Our plan is to sustain this library effort. By the end of the week we'll provide an update of the total, complete with a personal thanks to all of you who made donations. I can't tell you how much they meant to me and to our libraries.

And for those who still wish to participate, but missed last week's envelope, donations may be sent to: Save Our Libraries, c/o The Union at 464 Sutton Way, Grass Valley, 95945. READ MORE !

. . . from literacyspace blog:

URGENT MESSAGE FOR LIBRARY ADVOCATES

ALA reports that Congressional offices hear from teachers, police and firefighters every day and almost nothing from the library community.

Libraries are as essential as schools and public safety.
Libraries help the economy by helping people find jobs.
Library jobs are being cut now.
Libraries are not included in the Jobs for Main Street Act.

Library Advocates and Librarians must be as vocal as other public employees. The reason they are getting funding in this piece of legislation is because they call their congressional offices more often and in higher numbers than the library community.

Seattle Library names new CEO - Susan Hildreth, State Librarian of California

Seattle Library names new CEO:
California woman the 'clear choice'
Seattle PI: Nov 24, 2008 by Jon Naito

The candidate selected for the top position at The Seattle Public Library is an experienced executive who currently leads the nation's largest state library.

Susan Hildreth, the state librarian of California, was the unanimous choice of the library's board of trustees to become its new city librarian and chief executive officer, according to a news release Monday.

Hildreth was chosen after a nationwide search. The other finalists were Jane Light, director of the San Jose Public Library in California and Rivkah Sass, director of the Omaha Public Library in Nebraska.

Each of the finalists spent a day last week meeting with the library's board, its administration and staff, and members of the Library Foundation and Friends.

Hildreth, who will assume her post early next year, succeeds Deborah Jacobs, who left the library in July to accept a position with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. READ MORE

Presidential Debates and Libraries

Presidential Debates and Libraries
from a letter by James Rettig, ALA President

On Tuesday, October 7, one of the three 2008 Presidential debates between Senators Barack Obama and John McCain will be held at Belmont University in Nashville, TN. This debate will be a town hall format moderated by Tom Brokaw. The moderator will call on members of the audience as well as select questions submitted online.

During this election year, we are looking for librarians and supporters from across the country to call attention to the value of today’s libraries in our communities, as well as the issues the library community is facing.

We encourage all ALA members to submit questions.

The Commission on Presidential Debates has partnered with MySpace to create a new Web site, MyDebates. This site will become available in the days leading up to the first Presidential debate on September 26.

The more questions submitted, the more likely a library question will be asked. This is an opportunity for the library voice to become an important part of the 2008 Presidential election.