Ross Pendergraft Library is now recruiting students, faculty, and staff to stand up for libraries by signing the Declaration for the Rights of Libraries. Stop by the Reference Desk to add your name to the growing list of library supporters from around the world, affirming the right to free, democratic access to information.
The initiative, created by the American Library Association, aims to capture the importance of libraries of all types into one document which can be distributed and signed by individuals all over the country. It’s a small way to send a big message, that:
- Libraries Empower the Individual
- Libraries Support Literacy and Lifelong Learning
- Libraries Strengthen Families
- Libraries Build Communities
- Libraries Protect our Right to Know
- Libraries are the Great Equalizer
- Libraries Strengthen our Nation
- Libraries Advance Research and Scholarship
- Libraries Help Us to Better Understand Each Other
- Libraries Preserve Our Nation’s Cultural Heritage
Why is this important? When times are tight, libraries make an easy target for school districts, cities, and governments to save a little money. And it is often easier to cut libraries and library funding when ordinary people do not speak up for their immeasurable worth to this country’s literacy, education, and democracy.
Swing by the Reference Desk to add your John Hancock to the roster of names promoting the value of libraries, or sign virtually here. Help us increase public and media awareness about the critical role of libraries in our community and country one signature at a time. Feel free to use your fancy glitter pen–we won’t mind.