I hear people on Tumblr talk a lot about the importance of libraries; now’s your chance to help save one!
At Vermont State University is a newly merging Uni in so-called North America, pushing together three previously separate universities: Castleton University, Northern Vermont University, and Vermont Technical College.
Just last week, the new VTSU administration sent out an email to faculty, staff and students announcing that all the libraries at each of the 5 campuses contained within these universities would be moving to an ‘all-digital’ model. Librarians will lose their jobs if this plan goes ahead; in fact, librarians were only informed of this change 11 minutes before the email was sent out.
We have come to understand that this means that all physical material will be removed from the library. They seem to want to do other things with the space, such as set up ‘a coffee or smoothie bar’ and determine ‘what students want’ to do with the space. This plan would go into effect on July 1st, 2023.
The fact is, students want to keep the library as it is. Quiet, and full of stacks and stacks of physical books. The administration cannot claim they are listening to students when we have demonstrated, via hundreds of emails and impassioned testimonies in front of the administration at a forum last week, that we hate this plan and oppose it vehemently. And the faculty and staff are with us, and they too have been speaking out. Not only that, the communities that surround these colleges greatly value having access to a research library, particularly in rural Vermont, and are opposing the plan as well, because, as far as I know, they will completely lose access to these resources if everything goes digital.
The image of the books above are what I just checked out today. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed browsing the stacks, in one case (not pictured above) finding a tiny book of Milton’s poetry inscribed with a reader’s name and the year 1865. So many important and precious books like that one are to be found in our library. Each book I checked out hasn’t been checked out for at least 10 years, and that’s one of the administration’s excuses for taking all our books away: that circulation is down, and that, somehow, it costs money to let books sit on a shelf. As many people have rebutted, though, just because books aren’t being checked out doesn’t mean they aren’t being read within the library and, most importantly, it doesn’t mean that they don’t have value.
Below I will post some links to various local news article on this subject as well as one radio broadcast that will probably be able to articulate this situation better than I can.
I’m just so angry and upset about this. I’ve seen students and faculty alike crying about this situation, and an old lady braver than me telling the administration that maybe they should consider lowering their own salaries before taking away our books. I think everyone here feels powerless, because the administration isn’t backing down, despite all our protests, because ultimately their goal is profit and to make sure that this new ‘equitable’ University makes as much money as possible.
At the Castleton forum, the president of the University said he was ‘deeply humiliated’, by the outrage, by the heckling, the ‘throwing of verbal tomatoes’ as I have taken to calling it, by having his and his fellow’s bullshit exposed and questioned.
Please, please, if you care about books, about libraries, about the problems with big tech and the way it continues to invade all our lives, replacing physical experiences with their more hollow, less engaging counterparts; if you care about the interests of the people triumphing over the interests of capital, about students, about education, then please -- help save our books by spreading the word however and wherever you can, by flooding the inboxes of the capitalists below; tell them how you feel about this decision and its larger implications for books and libraries in general! Not so much to convince them that they’re wrong (they already know that and don’t care), but to make going forward with this plan more of a nuisance and a PR nightmare than cancelling it would be.
I don’t know if anyone will read or see this post, but please if you do and you care, reblog, educate yourself on what’s going on, and take action if you can.
A few disclaimers:
Any specifics I mention pertain primarily to what I, as a student at Castleton University, have either heard via word of mouth or seen with my own eyes. I am not officially speaking on behalf of anyone but myself.
The only exception to all the physical materials being removed from the libraries seem to be the books deemed ‘most used’ and some valuable historical collections. This was not clear from the beginning and not yet fully clear in any further specificity.
please try not to use violent rhetoric - as much as I’m not into policing people’s speech and anger, I don’t want this to backfire and I don’t want them to crackdown harder on us or make a big stink about it if they receive those kinds of messages
Email addresses of administration officials responsible for this decision:
Cold take, fucking love libraries. As someone who is constantly looking for a place to just be without needing to pay for anything, with free internet, and with a roof, the library consistently stays as my only option. There was a phase where me and my friends grew out of “children and youth houses” basically a building where parents would sign you up, there was a program, it was inside, yada yada yada. But then we were too old. And we were broke. And what do you do when you’re legally a child and not allowed to a lot of places, and ten dollars is still a fuckton of money? You go to the library. And sure, you have to stay pretty quiet, but there are computers, books, places to sit, chargers, sometimes a vending machine if it’s big enough, and you can just be. And there are lectures and community events, and it’s good!! I feel like it’s the only place for a community, at least in that large of a city as mine.
Solarpunk is a movement that envisions a future where we're responding intelligently to the environmental and social issues we face, with a focus on decentralized, sustainable, and community-driven solutions. Instead of using technology as a tool for exploitation, we harness it to support human needs and ecological health.
One concept that fits within the solarpunk framework is the Library of Things. A Library of Things is a community resource that allows people to borrow tools, equipment, and other goods that they only need occasionally or for a short period of time, instead of having to buy or rent them. This is a great way to enact solarpunk values with relatively low friction.
This model allows for more democratic access to stuff, while also curbing waste and consumerism. If you borrow from a Library of Things, that’s less stuff that you have to buy if you donate to a library, that empowers the rest of the folks using it.
This library can become a connective tissue for the community, turning it into a network of care, instead of individuals in proximity. This immediately makes that proximity meaningful, where users of the library are more likely to chat, form friendships, and build skills together that make the community better overall.
Libraries like this can also create a fertile ground for experimentation and creativity. When people have access to tools and things that they wouldn’t otherwise, combined with others to bounce ideas off of, this space can act as a launchpad for new ideas and designs to respond to community issues.
One of the most exciting things about this idea is that it’s already being implemented in some places. Toronto, Berkeley, and London all have their own takes on this.
Libraries are already super cool, and so having the ability to build a local solidarity economy around the library concept (while adding things to the design to make it more liberatory) is a really cool concept. Stuff like this is how we’ll get to a solarpunk future.
In a new executive order, President Trump has targeted the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the federal agency charged with
Today, President Donald J. Trump appointed Keith E. Sonderling as Acting Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), raising significant concerns for the nation’s library and museum communities.
IMLS is an independent federal agency with a statutory mission to provide funding, policy leadership, and research to support libraries and museums across the United States. This mission must remain nonpartisan and nonpolitical and aligned with the statutory framework established by Congress.
In the press release announcing his installation, Mr. Sonderling said, “I am committed to steering this organization in lockstep with this Administration to enhance efficiency and foster innovation. We will revitalize IMLS and restore focus on patriotism, ensuring we preserve our country’s core values, promote American exceptionalism and cultivate love of country in future generations.” We are concerned about M. Sonderling’s statement and want to ensure that our position is clear: The Trump Administration must not politicize the role of IMLS. Public libraries and museums serve all people without ideological bias, and federal funding should not be contingent on political agendas.
We need your help TODAY to tell your governors and key members of the House and Senate that federal funding for libraries - the Institute of
As the new Acting Director takes office, we want to reiterate that the Institute of Museum and Library Services is statutorily bound to fulfill its obligations under the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) and must continue implementing Congress’s appropriations as enacted in the current federal budget. Federal law and current-year appropriations mandate that IMLS disburse funding to Grants to States recipients, National Leadership Grants and Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program recipients, Native American and Native Hawaiian Library Services recipients, and all museums-focused grant recipients. The agency must continue its statutory operations and research portfolio as well.
We expect Acting IMLS Director Sonderling to execute these core functions faithfully, fairly, and in full compliance with federal law, especially as the Executive Order of March 14, 2025, comes into force. IMLS does not exist to promote political ideology; it ensures access to knowledge, history, and culture for all Americans. Any attempts to undermine this mission—through ideological funding restrictions, biased program administration, or politically motivated policy changes—would be a gross overreach and a violation of IMLS’s mandate.
We made it easy to call your members of Congress to fight against these cuts!
We call on Congress, particularly committees with jurisdiction over IMLS, to exercise oversight of implementing the March 14, 2025, Executive Order to ensure that IMLS remains faithful to its statutory obligations and does not become a tool for ideological influence. We encourage library and museum professionals, educators, and cultural institutions to closely monitor IMLS funding announcements and policy shifts for any indications of bias or undue influence. Libraries and museums must remain free from political interference and dedicated to the core values of learning, knowledge, and access for all.
Join us at SaveIMLS.org to advocate that IMLS upholds these values and ensures it serves every American community fairly and equitably.
Many of you who are online more than I am have likely/almost certainly heard that in the case of Hatchett v. internet archive, a judge ruled against IA’s “motion for summary judgement” (which you can look at below). They ruled that their controlled digital lending program (CDL) was not fair use and a violation of copyright.
But here’s the thing. IA and their partner libraries only scan and lend those books for which they have physical copies, and they lend only the number of copies a book that they have at one time. They are no different from your average library in this respect. The difference? They don’t require a physical address to have an account (As far as I can remember, correct me if I’m wrong), so homeless people are able to check out books, music, and everything else that IA offers for free.
They offer deleted web pages via the Wayback machine, which are essential for journalists doing research into shady shit that may have been deleted from the regular internet.
AND they’re not limited by the geographical boundaries of local libraries. Everyone, everywhere, has access to the same materials, except for in cases where there are legal restrictions on internet (a VPN can help you there!)
There’s NOTHING illegal about what IA is doing. But if we lose them, we’ll lose SO MUCH knowledge. Greedy publishers with more money they can ever spend are trying to restrict free access to knowledge to make more money they don’t need (when they’ve already made money of IA buying physical copies of the books in the first place!).
IA is appealing, but if publishers win this case, what’s next? Will they come for project Gutenberg? In my opinion it’s likely, because a loss in this case will likely call into question precedents involving copyright laws and public domain.
Which brings me to my next point- THEY WILL COME FOR LIBRARIES!!! IA is essentially an online library, one that has been and should be protected under the law. I’m not a lawyer (disclaimer), but this seems pretty clear to me: If slimy lawyers working for slimy companies and in league with slimy judges win this one, they will have shattered the way the law views existing permissions under copyright law.
And if they come for libraries? Well, the conservative US government already controls education, teaching us a white-washed view of history. The only way to truly learn a global perspective (and one that is written from the account of the oppressed and those lacking power) is to seek it out on one’s own. And systemic inequalities mean that many people could not afford to seek out that knowledge without libraries and free informational exchanges like IA. And 🏴☠️ can be hard, especially if you’re not as good with technology.
If oppressed and historically disenfranchised people are kept ignorant, then it is easier to keep them oppressed and to convince them to work against their own interests. College is financially unattainable for many, and free informational exchange is often the only way for people to expand their perspective. This threatens the powerful.
There are a plethora of other reasons that IA and libraries are good (safe and free entertainment, diachronic historical perspectives, a safe haven for the unhoused), but I think I’ve said enough and I have to get to my underpaid, un-unionized job (learn about collective action and unionization at your local library or on IA!!!)
If you can, donate! I’ll put links below for the donation page for IA, and the sources I used.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), with co-counsel Morrison Foerster LLP, is defending the Internet Archive against a lawsuit that th
Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine
Here's an easy way to help support your local library: follow them on social media, if they have it.
How does this support them? It brings them to the forefront of your mind. I've actually found a number of delightful little events that I wouldn't have thought to look for, that I can now plan on taking my child to (endearing the library to the next generation). It's also motivating to see these things, and gives me the energy I need to do things I want like get active in the community.
I also make sure to share things, particularly if I think my friends would find it interesting. Now this brings the library to the forefront of THEIR mind too, and solidifies the value of having it around. If things really come down to it, people are more likely to step in and do something.
As always, I want to emphasize that it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Everyone talks about big steps, and sometimes we don't have the capacity. Some of us are drowning just trying to exist, that doesn't mean we want other things to stop existing. If you can do more please do, but if you really are just struggling, this is something simple that still provides opportunities for both yourself and those around you.
