As you’ve probably noticed by now, I am a huge library fan. My family loves to read, and one of my favorite childhood memories is getting stacks of books from the local library. As I grew up, my mother volunteered in my school library, and I hung out there often. As an adult, I still go to the library often, as a patron and volunteer. It’s a magical place where everyone is welcome and there’s a book (or movie or album or activity) for any mood or taste.
While all of that is still true, libraries are now under siege in a way that they haven’t been in my lifetime. Books are challenged at an alarming rate. Librarians are dealing with censorship and intellectual freedom issues. They need our support more than ever.
I call on everyone to celebrate National Library Week this year and show that we need libraries. We need libraries connecting us to broadband and reading materials—but more importantly, they connect us to each other.
To learn more about libraries and how we can help them, see the American Library Association’s webpage for National Library Week at https://www.ala.org/conferencesevents/celebrationweeks/natlibraryweek.