As we close the book on 2017, it’s easy to look back on the last 12 months and feel concern, trepidation and even cynicism about the state of our country.
After all, the United States is a democracy built on the actions of an educated citizenry that can and does have informed and respectful debates across differences. It’s safe to say that in 2017, that foundation took a serious hit.
In 2017, facts were suddenly indistinguishable from fake news. Attention spans seemed increasingly limited to a maximum of 280 characters. Policy is being tweaked to potentially limit intellectual freedom and access to information (net neutrality, I’m looking at you). Both left and right live in separate reaffirming bubbles.
There is no doubt in my mind that it is harder than ever for Americans to inform themselves and make educated decisions and choices to support our democracy. I fear in many cases, we even encourage the public to remain willfully and blissfully ignorant. Just read the comments on any political news story on either side and prepare to be shocked by the delusion and misinformation being spread. It’s scary, and the situation can seem hopeless.
But it’s not.
All is not lost. The foundation may be cracked, but not broken. An admittedly limited but important example can be found at The New York Public Library. In 2017, we saw a 7% increase in circulation (including an increase in print circulation) and a 150% increase in early literacy program attendance. Our 92 branches are packed full of people, and our top checkouts of the year — released last week and topped by “Between the World and Me” by Ta-Nehisi Coates — includes a wide range of literary and intellectual titles.
Here in one of the country’s largest cities, people want to read. They want to learn. They want to be informed, and they want to pass that to their children. We know people in libraries across the country are striving for the same thing.
Regardless of our beliefs or backgrounds, we all have a responsibility as citizens of this great country to look in the mirror and determine how we can be better informed. Your local library is a good way to start.
For our part, we are doing what we can to improve access to information. The New York Public Library continues to develop partnerships with the Department of Education, Department of Homeless Services, and other agencies to ensure that all New Yorkers are aware of and can experience what we offer. We are investing hundreds of millions of dollars to renovate and in many cases expand our branches and research libraries to better equip them to serve the public now and in the future.
And back in October, we — along with the Brooklyn Public Library and Queens Library — waived all library fines for kids and teens, eliminating a barrier to entry and bringing back patrons who simply can’t afford to pay even small fines.
As a result of the amnesty, about 196,000 kids and teens citywide whose cards were blocked (because they had accrued fines of at least $15) can now use the library. Right away, we saw 11,000 of those kids and teens return to the library — a strong start. That’s thousands of kids and teens who have rekindled their relationship with reading, learning, and libraries.
Our resolution in 2018 is to keep working to bring more people back to our branches, reading and learning.
If you want to make a resolution in 2018, I suggest you get a library card. Visit at least once a week.
Bring your kids. Talk to trained librarians about how to do research and check facts (and if you need help, contact ASK-NYPL, our free reference service, from anywhere in the world to check facts you can’t confirm). Take an English language class. Join a book club. Download SimplyE, the NYPL’s free e-reader app, and start borrowing e-books to your device from anywhere. Check out the library’s wide range of online research collections and databases, many accessible from home, or visit one of our research centers, which are open to anyone and offer millions of collection items.
Read books. Read to your kids. The statistics are clear as day — all of these things stimulate learning, improve performance at work and school, and make us better. And, as an added bonus, it’s fun. Getting lost in a good story is needed, especially in troubling times. Reading to understand ourselves and to empathize with those who differ from us, is essential. And you can access it all for free. What are you waiting for?
Libraries are guardians of truth, fact, access and education for all. They are on the front lines of the battle for the American mind. So in 2018, whether you’re already a regular or haven’t been to a branch since you were a child, visit. You’ll learn something — and that’s something that benefits us all.
Marx is president and CEO of the New York Public Library.
![In a narrow vote this week, the Federal Trade Commission approved a rule that will ban the vast majority of noncompete clauses by U.S. employers, which have long prevented workers from switching jobs or setting out on their own. In doing so, the agency did its duty to protect American economic dynamism and opportunity, nothing less, nothing more. We hope that’s the clear conclusion of the courts that will now rule on a lawsuit being brought by the Chamber of Commerce, which has strenuously supported this anticompetitive practice. Of the arguments that the business group and other opponents have rolled […]](https://www.nydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/GettyImages-1820955015.jpg?w=490 "In a narrow vote this week, the Federal Trade Commission approved a rule that will ban the vast majority of noncompete clauses by U.S. employers, which have long prevented workers from switching jobs or setting out on their own. In doing so, the agency did its duty to protect American economic dynamism and opportunity, nothing less, nothing more. We hope that’s the clear conclusion of the courts that will now rule on a lawsuit being brought by the Chamber of Commerce, which has strenuously supported this anticompetitive practice. Of the arguments that the business group and other opponents have rolled […]")
