A bit upset that every other time I go to my public library I experience some sort of bigotry and at the same time I fully support public libraries and want them funded.
When I was 17 and a homeless trans high schooler trying to access the computer lab for longer than 1 hour a day, I was denied a library card (despite the homeless shelter being a valid address) because they worried I wouldn’t return my books. I told them it was so I could use the computer for schoolwork but they didn’t care.
Same year, different librarian, I was kicked out of the library because I was in the teen section. I showed my school ID and my regular ID and even school documents I had on me and they didn’t care. She also made a racist comment that my documents were “probably illegal too” to her coworker.
Even just last week, I was at the library with my partner and I present extremely androgynously most days, but I had been repeatedly femininely misgendered in the day so I went to use the bathroom and used the women’s restroom, just to be safe. But the women in the bathroom gave me dirty looks and sent (male) library staff to do a “safety check” of the bathroom while I was there only one in there. The staff member ended up not being too pushy about things but it was still an awful experience.
The librarians hover. The moms shield their kids. They treat me like a criminal. I’m not the only one having these experiences.
And at the same time, if my local library had better funding, maybe they could do some inclusivity trainings. Maybe they wouldn’t guard books that are available to the public like fine jewels. Or maybe they’d be worse or the same who knows.
But I still support my public library.
