Comments by C. David Warren

Public Library Appreciation Day

February 11, 2009

In good or bad economic times, the community expects the public library to have its doors open and the materials, information and assistance they need readily available.

Since the founding of our country, the public library has been the most democratic institution in our nation’s society, with services available equally to ALL citizens across ALL demographic sectors of our communities. It provides a warm, inviting place to turn when seeking information, job-hunting materials, library staff expertise, use of computers and reading for fun and inspiration. However, our libraries are becoming a SILENT TRAGEDY as use spirals, and funds decline.

In bad economic times such as these, the public library can truly be defined as it was recently by the Boston Globe as “A RECESSION SANCTUARY.” Our South Carolina libraries ARE on the brink of having to shut their doors and discontinue the acquisition of many databases and materials that provide a lifeline to many, as they seek to “transform” their lives due to job layoffs and cut back in work hours.

Many of those affected by the declining workforce have not written a resume in a decade or more. They are coming to our public libraries to seek assistance from our helpful staffs. They are using databases to identify employment opportunities and apply online for jobs. The public libraries in South Carolina are positioned to address these needs, if they only have the financial means to maintain hours, their staffs and the purchase of the informational materials needed by the public.

South Carolina’s public libraries have already become “RECESSION SANTUARIES” for the citizens of the state. Just ask any public library directors in attendance today, and they can share with you heart-warming accounts of individuals who have come to their institutions feeling “lost” as to how to address their unemployment and personal financial concerns. After meeting with library staff, they have left with an up-to-date resume in hand, a list of potential employers, and an uplifted spirit.

More than 70% of the residents of South Carolina hold a current library card and use their public libraries on a regular basis. In fact, there are more library cards in our state than drivers’ licenses. This is a very large constituency, and it is concerned for the future of their public libraries.

When personal funds are not there for going to the movies or maintaining cable television or buying books, they can turn to the public library. THEY ARE DOING SO IN RECORD NUMBERS. This has been true in all periods of recession in our history. We have lived through these periods before, and now our public libraries are AGAIN feeling the pressure.  And, as we all know, there has not been such a severe economic downtown since the 1930s. We must work together to ensure that our public libraries can continue to provide the hope and comfort of our citizens find in them.

I can give a personal account to how use of the public libraries in Richland County have seen phenomenal increases in the door counts, the number of items checked out, the number of hits on our Web site, the tremendous increase in attendance at free programming – all up over the past two years by 25% to over 30%.

Public libraries are looking to the South Carolina Legislature to insure they can maintain their Information and “recession sanctuaries” – our State Public Libraries - in these difficult times.

The South Carolina State Library is in dire need of the funding it has requested from the Legislature. Our county public library systems, especially those serving small populations, are in emergency modes.

Please help our public libraries, to the greatest extent possible, to continue to provide the friendly faces, the wealth of information and the personalized assistance provided by talented library staffs. You, the members of the South Carolina Legislature hold the key – that being the financial support necessary to adequately operate the state’s public libraries – to give hope to the many thousands of our residents who are struggling each day.

The Library - A Recession Sanctuary - by Derrick Z. Jackson

Printed in the Boston Globe - January 3, 2009