Saturday, April 19, 2008

Tweeding at the library

If demand for library services continues to increase at the 5 percent annual rate it has averaged over the past 20 years, the benefits will only be temporary. Overcrowding in Queens Library branches is expected to continue into the foreseeable future.

Crowded Libraries Show Popularity

Maintaining some degree of quiet and order under such conditions is a big challenge for library management, and is further intensified by the cultural diversity of Queens’ population. Joanne King, library spokeswoman, said that each ethnic group has its own way of thinking about what constitutes acceptable behavior in a given setting. Some groups might feel it okay to leave their young children in the library unattended, or to have loud conversations while others are trying to study.

Since the library is government-funded, it must welcome the entire public, including groups that other patrons find disruptive. “Our policy is to provide enough positive programming and engagement for teens who might otherwise engage in harmful behavior after school,” King said. That policy also extends to the homeless. “We welcome everybody.”


Libraries are supposed to provide books and a quiet place to read them. Let's knock off the "sensitivity" and have everyone simply shut the hell up.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was in my local libary 6 months ago when a homeless woman walked in. Everybody fled outside because she smelled so bad, even after the librarians opened all the windows.

Anonymous said...

>>>“Our policy is to provide enough positive programming and engagement for teens who might otherwise engage in harmful behavior after school,” King said. That policy also extends to the homeless. “We welcome everybody.”<<<

I'll do my research online.

www.forgotten-ny.com

Anonymous said...

Take a look at the library board - hardly a group of intellectuals, but mostly developer types - you know, the type that would take a playground away from a kid to build a library with tweeder programs.

This is not about research or education. It is about tweeding.

Anonymous said...

This was a post by a bitter person who has antipathy for people not like them. I decoded the racism.

Queens Crapper said...

I don't care what color the people around me are at the library as long as they are quiet while I am trying to read.

Anonymous said...

Queens libraries are out of control. Perhaps guidelines should be posted in a gazillion languages. It might help if the libraries told all those sugered-out kids to shut the **** up!

Anonymous said...

Oh lord look at the library at Lefferts Blvd-it just plainly sucks! I swear u can't hear yourself think in there. All these dumb as kids go their just to hang out.