To defend our public libraries, we need many of us, doing many different things locally, all across the country. One of the best ways to support our free public spaces is to roll up our sleeves and dive in, as patrons, as volunteers, and as organizers.
Use this list to help you take action, and to organize your friends and neighbors into doing the same. We’ve collected a ton of different independent action steps for Library Week (April 23-29) but really: every week is library week!
Find the actions that speak to you and go for it: be a library defender!
ACTION: Visit your local library and ask if they have a “Friends of the Library” group.
Find out what the group does and decide if you want to join as a volunteer. Getting involved with your local Friends of the Library is just one way to get together with people in your communities to be an advocate for public libraries.
P.S. The first 50 people to join a Friends group and complete this form will receive a small gift from us: Library Defenders Stickers, For The People buttons, and/or postcards. Do good, get swag!
ACTION: Contribute to FTP’s data collection project!
For The People is compiling the first-ever nationwide database of public library board seats, so that we can support leftists in running for office (or seeking appointment), and we need your help! To contribute data, sign up using this Volunteer Recruitment Form. Indicate what state you’re interested in working on, and what size batch you can work on (sizes are 25, 50, 75, 100, or an entire state). You’ll receive a dataset to research, based on your response. (And a huge thank you to the nearly 400 volunteers who have helped get the project this far!)
ACTION: Sign up for news, resources, & calls to action from Unite Against Book Bans!
A national campaign to protect the rights of everyone to access a variety of books, in libraries and elsewhere, Unite Against Book Bans connects, supports, and mobilizes local advocates to fight book bans in their communities or states. When UABB sends you the latest updates and calls to action, take a few minutes to keep up and show up!
ACTION: Share the word about defending libraries on your social channels!
Use that screen time for good: hop on social media and share your favorite action, statistic, or image from our gallery below (click through to find full-size images and suggested captions). Use the hashtags #LibraryDefender and #UniteAgainstBookBans and tag friends in your posts.
ACTION - Find out when your library board or governing body meets next, and make a plan to show up (in person or online).
Find out which elected body is in charge of your local library - is it a city council? A library board? A county board? If you don’t know, search online for your municipality’s or county’s name and “school board” or “library board.”
Nearly every state requires that public meeting days, times, and agendas be posted publicly online, so you should be able to find out when they’re meeting next.
Make a plan to show up - put it in your calendar, figure out where you’ll park, the whole deal. And then ACTUALLY DO IT. You don’t have to talk or do anything else your first time: just find the public meeting and go to it. Sit through it. Bring a friend! Bring a snack! Follow along on the agenda. Write down your questions.
Some municipalities offer the option to attend a meeting online, or to watch a livestream, or to view a recorded session later - this is also great! Everybody’s comfort level, access to, and ability to attend a meeting in person will vary (and the COVID protocols for different public meetings may be better or worse depending on where you are), so please prioritize your safety and your well-being. Whatever your participation looks like, the important thing is that you know what’s going on, who your elected officials are, what’s on their agendas, and what they’re up to.
This is the heart of democracy - your presence makes a big difference. Plus, once you’ve done it, you’ll know the drill for next time. But paying attention is the first step, so make it real and make it happen.
And if you ARE ready to speak up, check the agenda or the website for rules about public comment: you’ll find out how to sign up to speak, how long you have, when you have to be there, etc. You can download our printable guide of talking points for public meetings right now and prepare what you’re going to say.
ACTION: Print out a postcard, bookmark, or flyer detailing 10 Things You Can Do To Help Public Libraries!
You know that taking action locally is the only way anything will change - so help your friends and neighbors get started! Download and print our TEN WAYS TO HELP YOUR LOCAL PUBLIC LIBRARY guide, as a flyer, bookmark, or postcard. Post it online in neighborhood groups and on social media, and print your own copies to post on local bulletin boards, in coffeeshops and bookstores, and throughout other public areas.
ACTION: Join (or start up) your local anti-censorship group!
Book Riot has compiled an active list of anti-censorship groups by location. Don’t see one in your area? Start a group with your friends and neighbors, and add it to Book Riot’s list! If you need a little help in getting things off the ground, UABB has an action toolkit to point you in the right direction.
ACTION: Score amazing LIBRARY DEFENDER gear!
Rep your support for public libraries with your whole chest. These awesome designs are by Noah Jodice, and are available in a variety of super-soft styles (tees, tanks, crewnecks, hoodies, etc) and in a range of gorgeous colors.
All proceeds will be used to support access costs for our events (ASL interpretation, transcription, etc.) and other basic needs. Choose from two great designs - LIBRARIES ARE FOR THE PEOPLE and PUBLIC LIBRARY DEFENDER - or don’t choose, and order both!
ACTION: Research whether any elected officials in your state, city, county, or region have passed an anti-book ban resolution.
Right now, the state of Illinois is considering legislation that would make state grants to libraries (~$61 million dollars) contingent on local governments having a written policy prohibiting book bans.
Are your elected officials doing something similar to stand up against book bans? Today is the perfect day to warm up your search engine and find out which of your elected officials—whether they’re on your local town council, city council, county board, or elsewhere—needs to hear from you.
ACTION: Send a sample anti-book ban resolution to your local elected officials and urge them to adopt it.
If our local governments aren’t actively fighting book bans and censorship, then it’s up to us to hold them accountable.
Now that you know what’s happening (or more likely, what ISN’T happening), you can take the next step: asking your representatives to pass an anti-book ban resolution. Here’s how to do it:
Know which elected body is in charge of your local library - is it a city council? A library board? A county board? If you don’t know, search online for your municipality’s or county’s name and “school board” or “library board.” From there, most websites will include the email address and/or other contact information for each of the board members, as well as a general email account for the board. You may alternatively seek to call your local library or school to ask for the contact information of these officials. It’s a good practice to include all of the members of the board in the email or letter that you submit (it makes it much tougher to ignore).
Visit FTP’s Library Defender Resource Center to download Word document copies of sample resolutions (we have two options to choose from - they’re both great and have been passed by other cities and jurisdictions).
Type in your local city or municipality’s name in the highlighted portions of the resolution document, and make any changes that feel important for your specific community.
Copy and paste this language into your email (or modify it as you see fit):
Dear [Names of Elected Officials],
I’m writing to you as a concerned constituent of [your city, town, or library district]. As you have probably seen, censorship and book bans are on the rise - this year alone, the American Library Association has recorded more than 1200 attempts to ban books. Meanwhile, we know that the vast majority of people across the political spectrum like and trust their public libraries, and are opposed to book bans.
I believe that here in [name of your community], we can trust individuals to make their own decisions about what they read and believe. Along with my neighbors and family, I am asking you to please reject any efforts to ban books and to reaffirm your commitment to intellectual freedom.
To that end, please find attached a sample resolution that rejects censorship and book banning; I strongly urge you to add this resolution (or a similar statement) to the agenda and to vote to adopt it at your next regular meeting.
Thank you for everything you do on behalf of [your community name] and for your dedication to public service!
Sincerely,
[your name]
Attach your sample resolution and hit send! That’s it, you did it!
Optional Bonus Step: Tell us about it! We’d love to know if this process worked for you - just reply to this email and let us know how it went. We very much want to hear your story (and be able to share it, with your permission).
FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
Check out some of the recent coverage of FTP’s work as part of the larger movement to fight back against right-wing censorship and attacks on public libraries:
Melissa Gira Grant, “Conservatives Are Trying to Ban Books in Your Town. Librarians Are Fighting Back,” The New Republic (March 16, 2023)
Kelly Jensen, “Libraries For The People, EveryLibrary Want to Help You Get Involved with Your Library,” BookRiot (April 13, 2023)
Ariel Aberg-Riger, “The Fight for the American Public Library,” Bloomberg (April 26, 2023)