There Are Many Reasons Why Libraries Are Essential
This page is a resource for everyone who is standing up for libraries and their employees. Feel free to employ these quick thoughts, famous quotes, and longer essays about why all sorts of libraries matter to society.
- Only a tiny fraction of the world’s information is available for free on the internet. But all of it is available through libraries.
- Public libraries spur economic activity and deliver high ROI.
Some public libraries have become “hubs of entrepreneurship,” according to NPR:
“In a city looking to evolve from its industrial past … the investment in the library’s business services is already proving to be taxpayer money well spent.
‘Return on investment is big for us,’ she says. ‘We want to make sure we’re maximizing everything that we put out’.”
- Public libraries are on the front lines of helping homeless (ABC News, May 4, 2023).
- Libraries are portals to all of the world’s knowledge. And librarians make sure that knowledge continues to be recorded and saved for the future, even as information-storage devices and formats change.
- Public libraries can save people lots of money by loaning entertainment, books, movies, technology, household items, and more. Check out promotions from Niles-Main District Library, a Costco membership deal. See Also: “The Economic Case for Supporting Libraries.”
- The information kept in libraries helps everyday people start their own small businesses, which helps grow the economy.
- If libraries are not essential, then why have some of the world’s smartest and richest people (such as Andrew Carnegie and Bill Gates) poured their time and money into them?
- There is much more to doing real research than typing a few words into a search engine such as Google. Librarians are trained to do high-level research, which supports scientists, doctors, lawyers, professors, writers, government officials, and other important professionals every single day. Without the aide of librarians, all of these people would be making decisions without having all of the relevant knowledge they need on their topics.
- Librarians offer basic computer classes for anyone who want to get up to speed without paying for long-term, expensive classes.
- Libraries are economically efficient. Their model of sharing allows them to serve many people with few resources. And they often join to create consortia in order to buy hardware, software, and information at lower group prices. Libraries often have exceptionally high rates of Return on Investment; some have been measured at more than 600% ROI. (See one example from Toronto Public Library in Canada. And here’s a long article about San Francisco Public Library’s Branch Library Improvement Program, which says: “For every dollar invested in BLIP, San Francisco realized a return of between $5.19 and $9.11 over the twenty year life of the investments.”) This means that librarians are excellent stewards of public monies; they use their budgets carefully and get the most value out of every dollar. Contrast this to the way many corporations waste money.
- Many public libraries offer after-hours homework help, via online services that they subscribe to in order to support students’ learning.
- Public libraries are on the front lines of helping homeless (ABC News, May 4, 2023).
- Libraries are portals to all of the world’s knowledge. And librarians make sure that knowledge continues to be recorded and saved for the future, even as information-storage devices and formats change.
- Public libraries can save people lots of money by loaning entertainment, books, movies, technology, household items, and more. Check out promotions from Niles-Main District Library, a Costco membership deal. See Also: “The Economic Case for Supporting Libraries.”
- The information kept in libraries helps everyday people start their own small businesses, which helps grow the economy.
- If libraries are not essential, then why have some of the world’s smartest and richest people (such as Andrew Carnegie and Bill Gates) poured their time and money into them?
- There is much more to doing real research than typing a few words into a search engine such as Google. Librarians are trained to do high-level research, which supports scientists, doctors, lawyers, professors, writers, government officials, and other important professionals every single day. Without the aide of librarians, all of these people would be making decisions without having all of the relevant knowledge they need on their topics.
- Librarians offer basic computer classes for anyone who want to get up to speed without paying for long-term, expensive classes.
- Libraries are economically efficient. Their model of sharing allows them to serve many people with few resources. And they often join to create consortia in order to buy hardware, software, and information at lower group prices. Libraries often have exceptionally high rates of Return on Investment; some have been measured at more than 600% ROI. (See one example from Toronto Public Library in Canada. And here’s a long article about San Francisco Public Library’s Branch Library Improvement Program, which says: “For every dollar invested in BLIP, San Francisco realized a return of between $5.19 and $9.11 over the twenty year life of the investments.”) This means that librarians are excellent stewards of public monies; they use their budgets carefully and get the most value out of every dollar. Contrast this to the way many corporations waste money.
- Many public libraries offer after-hours homework help, via online services that they subscribe to in order to support students’ learning.
“But if economic growth is the priority, libraries should be a bigger, not smaller, part of the story. Study after study demonstrates that libraries make concrete economic contributions that well exceed what cities invest in them.
Take San Francisco and its public library system. Beginning in 2000, the city embarked on a Branch Library Improvement Program (BLIP) that invested millions of dollars in its branches. These were primarily capital improvements that included earthquake preparedness, Americans with Disabilities Act compliance and renovations that enabled increased internet connectivity. These investments added 33% more square feet to the library’s municipal footprint, 135% more public access computers and drove a 349% increase in attendance at programs for non-native English speakers.
They also stimulated significant economic activity, documented in the system’s impact report. Building projects led to a host of new contracts for local women- and minority-owned businesses. Neighborhoods revitalized by new branches saw small businesses, restaurants and coffee shops come in too. Libraries delivered services, including access to meeting rooms, computers, and broadband internet at rates far lower than what private institutions would cost. Leaving aside the very real benefits that can’t be quantified — the pleasure of reading a book, or meeting other children at story time — the city realized a return of between $5.19 and $9.11 for every dollar invested in BLIP, according to the study undertaken by the San Francisco Controller’s Office.”
From Other Sources
- Public Libraries magazine published “Community Centered: 23 Reasons Why Your Library Is the Most Important Place in Town” in 2013.
- The Atlantic published an editorial called “Rethinking Government: Why We Need Library Rental Fees” on July 21, 2011. On July 27, it published a response from ALA Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels called “Why We Need Free Public Libraries More Than Ever.” The many comments on both pieces showcase how people feel about public libraries, both positive and negative.
- ALA has a web page called “Tough Questions and Answers” that includes suggested responses to questions such as “Won’t computers and the Internet put libraries out of business?” and “With all this new technology, why do we even need librarians these days?”
- There’s a post on the Douglas County (Colorado) Libraries website from director Jamie LaRue that contains “7 Arguments for Building New Libraries.” While this is about constructing actual buildings, some are broad enough to cover why libraries matter overall.
- American Libraries magazine published a new version of an old article called “12 Ways Libraries Are Good for the Country.” It has good reasons and nice quotes you can use for presentations, signature files, etc.
- The Vancouver Sun published an article called “Public Libraries: We Need Them More Than Ever” written by the chairwoman of the Vancouver PL’s board. Two of its great quotes: “Indeed the development of the Internet – far from threatening libraries as some opponents of public services wishfully want us to believe – has created a whole new need for libraries, librarians, and the information management and facilitation services they offer.” and “Having a public library contributes to the development of human capital and the social infrastructure of the community.”
- In response to a June 2012 post on Forbes.com that said “The low pay rank and estimated growth rank make library and information science the worst master’s degree for jobs right now,” ALA President Maureen Sullivan wrote a reply that detailed the value of all types of librarians. She began with “While it is true that for some individuals [profit and growth] are the principal focus, for librarians the primary motivation is job satisfaction derived from the opportunity to make a significant difference in the lives of others. Librarians find fulfillment in their work because they provide essential services for patrons of public, school, college, university and other libraries.” Sullivan gives various examples of librarians doing vital work for the public good.