Week 10: Public Libraries

This week in 511 we had two presenters from public libraries. It was refreshing to hear them share stories that reinforce my beliefs, ambitions, and goals for librarianship. They are both following a mission that supports a future that I want to be part of!

My favorite story came from Meg Backus, who believes that the role of librarians is to empower a community to be active in shaping society. One example that showcased this belief revolved around the issue of “access to culture.” Meg explained that patrons are often forced into the position of consumers, due to copyright law and patents. She believes as a cultural institution, libraries should be promoting the use of culture. I strongly believe that libraries need to help communities move from a position of content consumers to content creators. Librarian as curators of content is an old model that will soon lose relevance to an entire community. Librarians as content collaborators is a new model we should strive to achieve. I believe if we take on this unique role, we will find ourselves in a position that can provide value to an entire community. One can already find examples of this in action at libraries across the country, from writing centers to recording studios and Fab Labs, librarians are empowering people to better their communities by giving them the tools and resources to create!