“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.” ~ Nelson Mandela
As recent graduates of the MLIS program at The University of Western Ontario, Sarah Barriage and Peggy McEachreon were inspired by the role libraries and librarians can play as advocates in the political arena -- advocates not just for libraries but also for the populations libraries serve. They were also keenly aware of the strong relationship between advocacy and outreach initiatives.
When a call for submissions came out from Library Juice Press to contribute to an upcoming book entitled Class and Librarianship: Essays at the Intersection of Information, Labor and Capital, they proposed to perform an information gathering survey sent to public libraries across Canada and to present their findings in an essay for the book. Public libraries are in a unique position to serve and engage with impoverished persons. Their chapter proposal, Poverty and the Public Library: How Canadian Public Libraries are Serving the Economically Challenged, was accepted and the real work began.
In their presentation, Sarah and Peggy will share the history and context for their collaboration, and then take you through the steps of their research process sharing personal stories and anecdotes as they go. Finally, they will share some of what they learned about how a few particular public libraries are reaching out to marginalized populations in Canada. The presenters hope you will leave their session feeling heartened and inspired.
