““Without libraries what have we? We have no past and no future.””
Libraries, those tranquil places to get out of the rain, charge your phone, do your homework, and of course engage with knowledge and entertainment, have found themselves a focal point of the current US culture war. Increasingly, segments of the community are calling for libraries to be defunded over allowing them to hold books considered harmful to children because of their progressive themes.
Banning books is nothing new, classics like: The Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Colour Purple, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Ulysses, Brave New World, and Of Mice and Men have all been on the banned list at some time.
In New Zealand, we also face funding challenges, not on the back of moral outrage, but to save Councils money, during tight economic times. Auckland Council threatened cuts to library services and operating hours as part of their response to 2023’s $295m budget shortfall, and in 2021, Christchurch City Council proposed to reduce the operating hours of its libraries to save money, as part of “a $329 million package of operational savings that have been incorporated into the Draft 2021-31 Long Term Plan.”
So is cutting library funding a good option to save money?
Are libraries still essential to help us understand our past and future, or are they as relevant as that dusty copy of Ulysses you have been meaning to read but haven’t quite picked up?
With the rapid advancement of technology and shift to more digital resources, some people might argue that there is less need for libraries in our modern cities. In fact, people did argue this in a community engagement project we analysed about the future of the Wellington City Library.
However, a substantially larger group argued the opposite. In both this Wellington project and a library planning project we completed for City of Melbourne, we found that across Australasia communities still feel that libraries play a vital role in our society.
A few common aspects appreciated by both Wellingtonians and Melburnians were:
Libraries are changing and adapting with the times, providing more and more digital resources and introducing services like click and collect.
Despite increased reliance on digital resources, people still enjoy having a physical library to visit.
Libraries are seen as equalisers – they remain one of the few places where people don’t have to spend money. Residents spend hours in libraries, reading, learning, relaxing and enjoying the quiet and warmth (or cool).
People missed the ability to visit the library during the COVID-19 pandemic, showing that a physical library still holds a special place for people.
People valued the ability to order books online over click and collect during the pandemic, and wished to see this service continue.
Library users also have some requests:
Longer opening hours, including weekends and evenings during the working week (not fewer).
More resources shifted online and high-quality wifi so digital services can be readily explored.
More in-person activities, events, and workshops.
New opportunities to do things that used to be done at home, such as maker spaces where people can sew and craft.
So, in the words of Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr, “Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose” or “The more things change the more they stay the same”. Overall, people want libraries to grow and evolve with the times, and offer opportunities and services that meet the needs of modern communities. At the same time there will be differing opinions on what libraries should provide, and even their very existence.
This mirrors changing opinions on individual books. While some banned the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because it was racist, coarse, trashy, inelegant, irreligious, obsolete, inaccurate, and mindless, others considered it a story about real human figures with genuine moral and ethical problems and decisions.
So are libraries essential? Without them, do we have no past and no future? Or is it ok to reduce library services or even cancel them?