The Ross Pendergraft Library and the Social Movements class are working together to bring a Human Library to Tech. This is happening at the library in room 300B on Thursday, November 4, 2021. This will be the fifth Human Library to take place here since 2015. Our inaugural event included one of the first Black students at Arkansas Tech, Barbara Lackey. Zach Stone who titled his book Zach the Deaf Trans and Bshaer Ahalrazi, an international student who lives with physical challenges, were also “books” at the first human library at Tech.
You may be wondering what a Human Library is. It is an event where the “books” are people. People who have defied stereotyping. People that you may not get to meet and talk to every day. The “readers” are the people like you who attend the event and “check out” a book. The book then talks about their unique experiences in life as part of a subculture or marginalized community. There is time at the end of the session for the reader to ask questions. The purpose of holding this event is to promote inclusion by getting people, that may not ordinarily sit down together, to talk in a safe environment. The Human Library provides a place for open conversations about sometimes difficult subjects.
The very first Human Library or “Menneskebiblioteket” as it is called in Danish, was held at a festival in Copenhagen, Denmark. After the success of the first event one of the founders, Ronni Abergel, realized the potential of such a feat and subsequently formed the Human Library Organization (HLO). The non-profit organization lends its name and provides guidance to other groups interested in hosting a program. Over the last 19 years, Human Libraries have taken place in 85 countries and 6 continents. We are honored to be part of such a positive experience.
Stop by and check out a book. This event is FREE and open to the public.