TESTIMONY
George Sarah Olkin, President, Local 1482 Brooklyn Library Guild Testifies on Book Banning and Democracy
1:36:37
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3 min
George Sarah Olkin, President of Local 1482 Brooklyn Library Guild and a bookmobile driver, emphasizes the vital role of library workers in opposing book bans and strengthening democracy through accessibility to diverse information. Highlighting the significance of information flow, he addresses the harmful effects of censorship on democracy, mentioning specific books and programs like BPL's 'Books on Band.' Olkin advocates for more resources and fair wages for library workers to counteract budget cuts that limit accessibility and effectively act as a form of censorship.
George Sarah Olken
1:36:37
Good afternoon.
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I'm George Sarah Olkin.
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I'm the bookmobile driver, and I'm the president of local 1482 representing workers at Brooklyn Public Library.
1:36:47
Chair Rivera, committee members.
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Thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify.
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I'm on behalf of my fellow library local presidents, and on behalf of nearly 3000 library workers we represent.
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Banning books flies in the face of what library workers do every day.
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Our work strengthens democracy by building free equal access to information about all kinds of people and ideas.
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The endeavor to cut off that flow of information discriminates and disenfranchises.
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The stakes could not be higher.
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This latest wave of censorship includes books about the health and well-being of children and teens, about grief and dying, about race and racism.
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One of the most challenged books in our libraries is genderqueer by Maya Cobbe, an informative and wholesome graphic memoir about the artist's experience of gender.
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From adolescence to adulthood.
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We have seen the tragic effects of antiqueer and anti trans rhetoric and legislation.
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Just last week, we learned to the death of a non binary teenager.
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After persistent bullying in Oklahoma following that state's bathroom ban.
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Every day, library union members are fighting back We've extended our collections, especially to the young people most in need.
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Today, you've heard about BPL's books on band program that gives digital access to students all over the country, including in Oklahoma, where a teacher lost her job for sharing the library's QR code.
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That teacher is now a defiant act advocate for teens across the United States as an employee at Brooklyn Public Library.
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Last year, the libraries celebrated 50 years of hip hop, that vital art form, which New York City gave to the world, which challenges anti black stereotypes and champions empowerment.
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Make no mistake.
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Cynical campaigns to ban books and address races to ban books that address racism and inequality, and about black excellence are attempts to roll back the hard earned rights of African Americans and indigenous folks and other people color.
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Library workers ensure our libraries are accessible to patrons across physical and virtual spaces.
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Our clerical staff provide welcoming services to everyone walking through our doors.
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Our collection development and programming staff Ensure our collections and programs reflect our city's diversity.
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Our custodians and maintainers provide clean, comfortable, and safe spaces.
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Our tech staff provide technology and classes for patrons of all ages to find trustworthy information online.
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And our public safety teams make sure library programs are not by cynical protesters, who would have us believe that someone dressed as a mermaid, reading a story to kids about Kony Island's world famous mermaid parade, is anything other than a popular family event.
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This might feel like a problem that is elsewhere, but library funding cuts in New York City threaten our ability to fight these bands and to forge and support folks here and across the country.
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Cuts threaten our ability to hire the next generation of new voices.
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Who teach all of us to dream bigger.
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Cuts limit the digital access.
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We extend to vulnerable teens.
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Cuts to hours and collections may spare jobs.
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But we're still limited and understaffed.
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We need more resources, not just fewer cuts, because budget cuts are form of banning too, defunding libraries, Cut off the information just as surely as banning books.
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If we're serious about this fight for democracy, liberation, and human flourishing, We need more access to libraries and fair wages for library workers.
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New York is a beacon.
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Who we say is cool, JZ, Shirley Chisholm, what we read changed the world.
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The powers that some among the powers that be our afraid that young people reading books will ask tough questions and demand answers.
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Our library workers ensure these questions get asked and that we get the answers we deserve.
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Thank you.