I have mentioned, and with great passion, that I love where we live. A tiny corner of Boston that is a bit more quiet and removed, urban yet not. We live blocks from the village center, which is home to darling stores, amazing restaurants, parks, and our library. Oh, our library. For the past year I have frequented it with the girls to dig into their large children's collection. I have overlooked the filth, the disorganization, the lack of comfortable seating, the surly librarians, and the total lack of color, decoration, and warmth (though don't get me started on the actual heat, which blasts you the second you walk in) because it was so close to home. It is our library, and bumps and all; I embraced it.
Well, this week we had another encounter with one of the librarians who barely speaks to us, gives us attitude when she does, and makes most every visit feel awful. We make our visits as short as possible, interact with the staff as little as possible, and I am always glad to leave. But this week, after a year of feeling this way, I just couldn't let it go. I want my library to be a welcoming space. I want to see that little round building in the middle of the village shine. So I harnessed the power of the local parent's forum and posted the following:
After yesterday's experience I can no longer be quiet about how I am
continually treated at the Roslindale Branch Library. There are so many
things I love about living so close to the village, and walking to my
library tops the list. We go every two weeks, and while the library
lacks comfort, cleanliness, and any sort of color, I can almost
overlook that if the staff were more accommodating, or nice even. Full
disclosure, I am a children's librarian. I don't want this to become a
witch-hunt either. What I do want is a neighborhood library that is
more family friendly with better patron service and respect. Maybe a
smile or a return courtesy, i.e., I say "Thank you" and you
acknowledge me, my children, something. I don't begin to imagine they
have an easy job; public librarianship is often a thankless job. But
that is exactly why my family goes above and beyond to be good patrons.
It is not too much to ask for a little something back from the branch,
it's employees, and the BPL at large.
Thank you for allowing me
to vent. Care to share experiences with me? Good and bad? Ideas on how
to make our neighborhood library shine? And BPL people out there who I
can speak to directly, offline?
Thanks for listening,
Olivia
(mt to Bea and Josie, who love the library very much and who deserve,
as all people do, a safe, clean, and caring space to explore
information)
The response from my parent's group has been astounding. The whole thread on my
parent's group left off with many positive comments about making
changes, voices of solidarity and support, and the beginning of
something that feels big.
There is so much potential in our little library. It does not go without notice or utmost respect and understanding that public librarianship is often a thankless job. The patronage at this branch can be very difficult, but it can also be very wonderful. Budgets and libraries are often laughable, and I know I should just feel lucky to have a library that is open and staffed. But I don't think that is enough of a reason to tolerate an environment that is so unwelcoming, especially in a neighborhood that exhibits everything to the contrary: Roslindale is a beautiful and welcoming place, it deserve a library that mirrors that.
Lastly, let the irony be known in this: It has been over a year since I have run a library, which was in a school in an affluent suburb. Very different from what we are dealing with here. I know that. I don't begin to compare. And as a librarian, there was always this annoyance in dealing with parents with too much education and too much time on their hands who loved to tell you how to do your job "better." I hope I am working towards something bigger than that, but perhaps I am just like them. I don't know. What I am certain of is that I am a librarian. I love libraries. I am not necessarily approaching this as the know-it-all mom or the know-it-all librarian; just someone in between.
