Library advocates from around New York state will gather at a rally in Albany on Wednesday to demonstrate over what increased library funding would mean for libraries and the importance of libraries in the neighborhoods they serve.

The New York Library Association will lead the annual rally on Library Advocacy Day in the state capital. Since 2011, the rallies have resulted in more than $11 million in additional library aid, according to the association.

“We don’t want to be silent and just accept it when they do cut funding,” said Renate Dunsmore, manager of White Branch Library on Butternut Street in Syracuse. “Libraries matter.”

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Dunsmore will leave Wednesday at 6:30 a.m. to go to Albany for the rally. At libraries, she said, children learn to read and love reading. Immigrants, including Syracuse’s refugee community, learn English at libraries, she said.

Dunsmore said White Branch Library caters to the needs of the refugee community in the area, offering free classes in sign language and English.

At libraries in Syracuse, job-seekers polish resumes and search open positions. Free internet mitigates the digital divide in the United States, and libraries are hotbeds for thinking, dreaming, studying and staying safe, away from the elements outside, several librarians interviewed by The Daily Orange said.

Librarians said their spaces provide a place for community members of all backgrounds and abilities to congregate, share ideas and learn from one another. Economic differences can be put aside.

Despite some libraries having to cut circulation of bound books due to budget cuts, librarians said they’ve progressed in the digital age. Most libraries offer digital subscriptions to magazines, newspapers, e-book platforms and computer software, such as Microsoft Suite.

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According to a 2016 survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, about half of all Americans 16 years and older used a public library in the past year, and two-thirds said that closing their local branch would have a “major impact on their community.”

There are more than 30 branches in the Onondaga County Library System. Not only do they provide books on the shelves, but they offer readings for children and musical events. Librarians said libraries are essential to a community’s vitality, and that’s why they’re pushing lawmakers in Albany to consider more funding.

“We have free access to the internet, which not all people can afford,” said Jane Kalkbrenner, manager of Betts Branch Library on South Salina Street. “We have access to technology. We have books for people looking to read for pleasure. We had a kid’s event where they could dig in the sand. Everybody benefits from a library.”

Among librarians’ fondest memories on the job: helping immigrants and job-seekers get what they need. Recently, a person walked into Betts Branch Library and asked Kalkbrenner for help finding employment. She guided him to a resource, and he returned days later to tell her he had gotten the job.

Kalkbrenner said a library is where people of varying classes and races can come together under a single roof. For that reason, she and other library advocates are calling for more funding and support.

“I like being able to help people find what it is to make their lives better,” Kalkbrenner said. “There’s a lot of power in that.”

Published on February 26, 2019 at 10:58 pm

Contact Matthew: mguti100@syr.edu | @MatthewGut21