TOGETHER, WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE AND DRIVE CHANGE.

>>> THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO LEAD THE CHICAGO BASED AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION WAS NAMED ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE OF THE YEAR.

TRACY HALL'S LIFE WORK TEACHES ALL OF US THAT THE LIBRARY AND BOOKS CAN FREE US FROM HATRED AND LIES NOT JUST FOR THE PRESENT GENERATION BUT FOR ALL TO COME.

THIS COMES AS THE ASSOCIATION REPORTS EFFORTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO BAN BOOKS NEARLY DOUBLED IN 2022 FROM THE PREVIOUS YEAR.

JOINING US NOW TO TALK ABOUT IT ALL IS TRACY HALL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION.

CONGRATS AND THANKS FOR JOINING US.

>> THANKS FOR HAVING ME.

>> CAN YOU BELIEVE THE LINE I READ FROM TIME MAGAZINE AND WHAT THEY SAID ABOUT YOU?

HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT MAKING THE LIST?

>> FIRST OF ALL, IT'S STILL SINKING IN.

I DEFINITELY KNOW IT IS NOT ABOUT ME.

IT IS ABOUT THIS MOMENT IN TIME.

THE LIBRARIES AND LIBRARIES AND FOR ALL OF US WHO ARE COMMITTED TO ENSURE THAT THE RIGHT TO READ PASSES ONTO ANOTHER GENERATION.

BUT I'M STILL IN DISBELIEF.

I FOUND OUT ABOUT IT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT.

I WAS BURNING THE MIDNIGHT OIL LIKE SOME OF US DO AND THIS EMAIL COMES OVER AND IT ASKS ME TO VERIFY WHO I WAS AND MY DATE OF BIRTH AND IT WAS FROM TIME 100.

WHEN I INVESTIGATED AND FOUND OUT IT WAS REAL, I WAS IN SHOCK.

>> I KNOW YOU GET A SORT OF STRANGE EMAIL ASKING YOU WHO YOU ARE.

I DON'T HAVE TO IDENTIFY MYSELF TO YOU.

>> RIGHT.

EXACTLY.

>> GLAD YOU DID.

SO, YOU'RE THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO HEAD THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN TO YOU?

>> WELL THERE'S A LOT OF FIRSTS.

ONE THING I THINK A LOT ABOUT IN TERMS OF HONORS FOR BLACK WOMEN IS THAT IN 1957, THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION HONORED A BLACK SORORITY DELTA SIGMA THETA FOR A FUNDING MOBILE BOOK MOBILE.

THROUGHOUT THE SOUTH.

FIGHTING AGAINST SEGREGATED LIBRARIES.

SO THEY ARE JUST A HISTORY OF PEOPLE OF COLOR IN GENERAL LEADING THE WAY WHEN IT COMES TO LIBRARIES.

>> TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH READING AND THE LIBRARIES.

>> WELL, I AM DEDICATED TO LIBRARIES BECAUSE MY GRANDPARENTS ON MY MATERNAL SIDE REALLY DEALT WITH AND HAD TO NAVIGATE LOW LITERACY.

AND SO THEY REALLY PUSHED ME TO PURSUE EDUCATION AND MY GRANDMOTHER WALKED WITH ME TO THE LIBRARY EVERY DAY.

AND SO, IT IS REALLY AN HONOR OF HER AND IN HONOR OF PEOPLE LIKE HER THAT THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION IS SUPPORTING THE EXPANSION OF LITERACY OUTLETS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY.

THE LIBRARY BASED LITERACY INSTRUCTION.

SO I THINK ABOUT MY GRANDMOTHER EVERY DAY.

WORK IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO ME AND OTHER WORK THAT WE DO.

THOSE THINGS HIT CLOSE TO HOME BECAUSE I GREW UP IN SOUTH CENTRAL LA.

SO A LOT OF THE WORK I DO TODAY WAS INSPIRED REALLY BY MY CHILDHOOD.

>> WE ARE SEEING AS WE MENTIONED ACROSS THE COUNTRY MORE EFFORTS TO BAN BOOKS.

SOME OFFICIALS THREATENING TO SHUT DOWN LIBRARIES.

WHAT'S AT STAKE HERE?

>> WHAT'S AT STAKE IS THAT LIBRARIES TODAY ARE THE LARGEST PROVIDER OF NOT ONLY PRINT MATERIAL BUT DIGITAL ACCESS.

AND SO, IF YOU HAVE EVER WORKED IN THE LIBRARY, YOU KNOW THAT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE QUEUING UP IN FRONT OF A LIBRARY AND TWO HOURS EARLY ARE PEOPLE WHO NEED ACCESS TO COMPUTERS, TO TEXTBOOKS THAT MIGHT BE IN THE LIBRARY THAT THEY CAN'T AFFORD AND THEY NEED THOSE THINGS BEFORE THEY START THEIR DAY.

AND THE THING THAT I FEAR AND I KNOW THAT WE WON'T STAND FOR IT IS THAT IF WE SIT SILENT WHILE SOME OF THIS LEGISLATION IS PROPOSED, IT COULD REALLY ERADICATE ONE OF THE MOST USED PUBLIC SERVICES THAT WE HAVE IN OUR COUNTRY TODAY.

>> HOW IS THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION APPROACHING THIS.

>> WELL, IN A VARIETY OF WAYS.

THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION WAS THE FIRST NATIONAL ORGANIZATION TO MOUNT AN ANTICENSORSHIP PROGRAM.

I WOULD ENCOURAGE EVERYBODY TO GO TO UNITE AGAINST BOOK BANS.ORG.

AND RECEIVE THEIR OWN PLAY BOOK.

HOW THEY CAN ORGANIZE IN THEIR HOUSEHOLDS.

IN THEIR COMMUNITIES AND IN THE LARGER SPHERE OF INFLUENCE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE MAKE SURE THAT THE NOTION THAT FREE PEOPLE READ FREELY IS NOT SOMETHING THAT WE JUST SAY.

BUT SOMETHING THAT IS A REALITY.

NEXT WEEK, WE WILL BE CELEBRATING NATIONAL LIBRARY WEEK AND THE FIRST DAY, THAT MONDAY, IS NATIONAL RIGHT TO READ DAY.

WHERE WE ARE AFFIRMING NOT ONLY DOES EVERYONE HAVE THE RIGHT TO READ, BUT IT IS ALSO RIGHT TO READ.

AND THAT WHOLE WEEK IS DEDICATED TO THE NOTION THAT LIBRARIES OFFER MORE THAN JUST PRINT.

WE OFFER ALL KINDS OF PROGRAMS, BASIC LITERACY, FAMILY LITERACY.

PROGRAMS FOR ENTREPRENEURS.

ART PROGRAMS.

ET CETERA.

>> THE ROLE OF LIBRARIES HAS BEEN EXPANDED IN MANY WAYS.

AND YOU KNOW, WE CAN TALK ABOUT SOME LIBRARIES BEING PLACES WHERE FOLKS CAN GET NARCAN OR OPIOID OVERDOSES.

THAT KIND OF STUFF.

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE ROLE THAT THE LIBRARY CAN HAVE IN THE COMMUNITY?

>> SIMPLY THIS.

I THINK THAT WHETHER IT IS ON A CAMPUS, A SCHOOL, OR A UNIVERSITY, I BELIEVE THAT THE LIBRARY IS A SWITCHING STATION AND WE TALK ABOUT PUBLIC LIBRARIES.

THERE'S ABOUT 17,000 PUBLIC LIBRARIES.

MORE PUBLIC LIBRARIES THAN MCDONALDS.

I BELIEVE THAT LIBRARIES ARE THE COMMUNITY HUB OF ANY NEIGHBORHOOD.

>> WHAT CAN LIBRARIES DO TO BETTER SERVE THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY?

>> FIRST, I THINK WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERY SINGLE PERSON IN THIS COUNTRY HAS A LIBRARY CARD AND IS ACCESSING LIBRARY RESOURCES.

WHETHER DIGITALLY.

I THINK WHAT LIBRARIES CONTINUE TO DO IS ENGAGE THEIR COMMUNITIES.

REPRESENT THEIR COMMUNITIES.

I'M A LIBRARIAN AND I HAVE BEEN A LIBRARIAN ABOUT 25 YEARS AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE ANYONE WHO IS INTERESTED IN EDUCATION WITH A LITTLE BIT OF SOCIAL SERVICES TO THINK ABOUT LIBRARYSHIP AS A