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National Library Advocacy Day 2010!
Capitol Hill was seeing red as over 1,600 librarians braved the hot temperatures to take part in Library Advocacy Day on June 29 during the American Library Association’s annual conference in Washington DC. Wisconsin was well represented at this event with over 20 librarians and library advocates from across the state joining together to rally for libraries.
The day started early with everyone grabbing buses that left from the Convention Center starting at 10 AM. Thanks to a generous donation, nearly every librarian had on a red t-shirt expressing our support of libraries. Under a bright Washington DC sky, we made quite an impression in the Upper Senate Hill Park where we gathered for the rally that started at 11 AM. During speeches by ALA President Camila Alire, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), young adult author Lauren Myracle, and U.S. Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-MI), all the librarians cried out their support for libraries and called for Congress to always recognize the importance of libraries to education and to their communities. ALA Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels was the final rally speaker and he asked all of us to remind our legislators that millions of school children and their constituents depend on library services each and every day.
Immediately following the rally, eighteen of the Wisconsin librarians and advocates began a series of meetings with state legislators from both the House and Senate. We were represented by: John Pollitz, M.J. Wiseman, JoAnn Carr, Jon Mark Bolthouse along with his wife & nine year old daughter, Alberto Herrera Jr., Julie Schneider, Ewa Barczyk, Michelle McKnelley, Jean Zanoni, Linda Kopecky, Linda Vincent, Jamie Healy-Plotkin, Gary Poulson, Easter DiGangi, and Kristin Jacobson. It was great to have so many librarians participating in these visits and representing a variety of library types.
The entire group was able to meet with both Senator Russ Feingold and with Senator Herb Kohl but then we split the group in order to be able to meet with as many Representatives as possible. So later in the afternoon, various Wisconsin librarians were able to meet and talk with Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, Congresswoman Gwen Moore, Congressman Paul Ryan, and Congressman Ron Kind. We enjoyed our discussions with Senate and Congressional staff but we were thrilled to also have the opportunity to speak directly and briefly with Senator Herb Kohl, Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, and Congressman Ron Kind.
I want to thank the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction for all their help in providing the librarians with a number of issue briefs that we shared with each of the office staff that we met with. ALA also provided issue cards and briefs that were distributed as well. DPI staff were invaluable in getting materials in support of Library Advocacy Day to Washington DC.
Some of the key issues that we brought to the attention of Senate and Congressional staff included: funding for the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) at $300 million; the funding of the “Improving Literacy through School Libraries” program at $100 million; in the ESEA Reauthorization, the inclusion of a requirement that all schools have a fully-funded school library with a full time, state-certified school librarian; support for a free and open Internet for all by voting in favor of Net Neutrality; co-sponsorship of the “Access to Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act” of 2009; continuation of Universal Service (E-Rate) discounts for schools and public libraries and the co-sponsorship of the Federal Research Public Access Act of 2009.
The librarians that participated in Library Advocacy Day are unanimous in their enthusiasm for meeting with Senate and Congressional staff and in sharing their individual stories of providing library services and resources to the communities they serve in Wisconsin.
If you were in Washington DC on June 29 and anywhere near the Capitol or other nearby buildings, you too would have seen a sea of red and would have heard the rallying cries of, “We’re going to tell them!” and “Vote for Libraries”.
--Julie Schneider, WLA’s ALA Councilor and Federal Legislative Advocate
(Director, Ebling Health Sciences Library)
Additional information may be obtained from the Wisconsin Federal Legislative Advocate:
Julie Schneider
jschneider@library.wisc.edu
(608) 263-5755