Library Services to Immigrants
Libraries today are emerging as community centers, instead of their traditional role as merely a center for lending books. They facilitate access to information, provide Internet access, loan DVDs and music, and provide information about community organizations and services. The question now is what are libraries to do with the rapidly growing immigrant populations emerging within the United States? Libraries all over the country are stepping up to the challenge by offering services and programming in many different languages and promoting cultural understanding within the community.
Programming
Many different options exist for developing and implementing programming geared towards immigrants. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services joined together with the Institute of Museum and Library Sciences in order to study the most effective way for libraries to promote services and programs for immigrants. They convened a council of several of the most prominent libraries and came up with a number of recommendations for other libraries who are looking to include programming and outreach for immigrants. These include:
- Form partnerships with immigrant outreach organizations within the community, and seek
their feedback on events
- Work to expand collections to include ESL materials and materials in the other native
languages present in the community
- Provide user friendly information services, including websites, which use consultation
services from representatives within the immigrant community
- When establishing programs, seek input from members of the immigrant community
- Look towards the future needs of the immigrant constituency when planning for the library as a
whole
- Actively outreach to the immigrant community to educate about library services
To read the entire study, visit http://www.uscis.gov/files/nativedocuments/Library_Services_Report.pdf.
Other great programming ideas include and English Conversation Club, GED classes, multi-lingual signage, employing multi-lingual staff, and keeping in touch with local immigration agencies and programs.
Policies Regarding Immigrants and Refugees
The ALA supports the rights of immigrants, documented or not, to use the library system. In January 2007 the ALA passed the Resolution in Support of Immigrant Rights. This resolution supports and protects the civil liberties of each individual person, regardless of their residency status, and also seeks to combat any legislation which infringes on the rights of individuals to use library services. To see the complete resolution, visit http://www.ala.org/Template.cfm?Section=pressreleases&template=/contentmanagement/contentdisplay.cfm&ContentID=149851.
Each individual library must make its own policies regarding who receives rights to access the library. Capital Area District Libraries issues cards provided the user has a photo ID (passports and consular ids are accepted), and a piece of mail stating that he/she resides in the service area. East Lansing Public library requires a driver's licence or passport proving that the patron resides in East Lansing. In other states, the policies can be drastically different. A library system in Georgia cut $3000 from the Spanish-language budget because they "didn't need to cater to illegal aliens" (Criticas pp. 1). The decision was later reversed due to community outcry, but the sentiment which caused the initial decision was still prevalent in the library system.
Ethical Dilemmas: What's a library to do?
The core conflict libraries face is maintaining their promise to facilitate information access to the public and serve the community, when parts of the community have a negative response to the library's dedication to serve the immigrant population. According to the ALA, the library is obligated to serve the needs of the overall community. In this case, it is necessary for the library to create its own policy and educate the community, while still maintaining strong community relations with the entire community as a whole.
Ethical Scenario 1: Librarians in a Virginia town may soon be required to ask patrons for proof of citizenship. In July, residents of two counties passed resolutions banning illegal immigrants from using public services. If this happened in your library, how would you respond? How should the library try to counteract these measures, or should they comply, since they are clearly the opinion of the majority?
Ethical Scenario 2: Ninety communities have passed restrictions limiting immigrant access to public services. If a similar proposition came on the ballot in your community, how would you respond? Is it the place of the library to try to become involved in such politics, even if they would ultimately affect the library?
Resources
Here are some resources to serve the library community as a whole, while also reaching out to the immigrant populations.
Reforma, an affiliate of the ALA which promotes library and information services to Latinos and the Spanish speaking.
SOL, Spanish in Our Libraries. This site offers basic Spanish vocabulary for the library.
ALA, offers guidelines to help form policy regarding immigrants
Sources:
Barr, C. (2006). Rewriting Book on Libraries From Immigrants' View in Washington Post. Retrieved November 27, 2007.washingtonpost.com. Washington, D.C.
Personal Communication. November 27, 2007. Circulation Desk, East Lansing Public Library.
Garcia, L. (2007). US Libraries and Anti-immigrant Sentiment: How Libraries are Coping with Discrimination to Better Serve Hispanic Communities in Criticas magazine. Retrieved November 26, 2007. criticasmagazine.com.
Pinkowski, J. (2007). VA Counties Target Illegal Immigrants; Librarians May Be Put in a Bind in Library Journal. Retrieved November 26, 2007. libraryjourmal.com.
