Library Advocates to Rally Against Cuts This Week
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Library Advocates to Rally Against Cuts This Week
Catherine Lucey
Library advocates will rally in City Hall on Thursday against Mayor Nutter's plan to cut library hours as part of a $20 million budget reduction. Here's their announcement:
EMERGENCY RALLY
This Thursday, June 3, 9:15 AM, outside Room 400, City Council Chambers, 4th Floor, City Hall; then we’ll Rally in front of the Mayor’s Office on the 2nd Floor; Organized by the Coalition to Save the Libraries.
Last year, we all saved the libraries!!!, but the Mayor still cut $8 million - 20% of the library budget, reduced library hours from 6 to 5 days a week, and eliminated over 100 positions.
In the last year and a half, through 2009 and much of 2010, rolling closures remained the rule, due to a shortage of security guards and other staff and Library Director Reardon’s “rule of 4,” requiring that 4 people, including a guard, be present in every library, or else the library would be closed.
From October 2009 through April 2010, an average of 4.2 of the system’s 54 branches have been closed EVERY day, due to staffing or building issues.
Due to the rolling closures, in a 9-month period of fiscal year 2010, the number of visits by patrons to branch libraries was down 16% over a comparable period in fiscal 2009.
On March 1, the Mayor pledged to representatives of many of our Friends groups citywide that there would be NO further cuts to our libraries in next year’s budget.
On May 20, the Mayor announced $20 million in cuts to next year’s budget, including $2.5 million in cuts to libraries, in order to cut over 50 library workers and reduce library hours from 5 to 4 days a week. If the Mayor succeeds in his plan, we will have lost 2 out of 6 library days in neighborhood branches during the last 2 years!!!
This plan will be effective July 1, UNLESS WE STOP THESE CUTS TO OUR LIBRARIES!
Come out to the Rally at City Hall on June 3, and spread the word!
On Thursday, June 3, we will begin at 9:15 AM with a press conference/rally outside of City Council chambers, Room 400 on the 4th Floor of City Hall, and then march to the Mayor’s Office on the 2nd Floor. The Rally will focus on cuts to libraries, youth violence prevention programs, and fire companies.
Whether or not you can participate in the Rally, please call the Mayor’s office on Thursday at 215-686-2181. DEMAND NO MORE CUTS TO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD BRANCHES!!!
A sad reality of our environment. The only people who care if a library closes are the ones who work there. Most books in an inner city library only collect dust.— junethe4th- Really junethe4th? The residents in the neighborhood where I work are upset when I have to tell them we won't be open on such and such a day, or that we'll have to close early.— Library Spinster
- At the Kingsessing Library in SW Philly the library is always busy. Many schools don't have libraries and if you are out of work try finding a job these days without access to the internet. June the 4th is just parroting some false racial stereotypes that don't bear out the realities.— seand
- Library and seand maybe you two should try reading. I did not say people do not use the library, the books are not used. seand, you can take that racial c--p and shove ... Typical retort when someone is unable to reply.— junethe4th
Comment removed.- Sounds the a cutback scenario that sets a schedule where those that need the library can plan their week to get there when it is open. Not sll that bad. Let's face it, the intended purpose of libraries wii no longer exist as a resulr of the internet much thw way newspapers will disappear just like cassette tapes.— ritaf
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David Gambacorta spent a small eternity writing about cops, drug dealers and serial killers. Now he’s writing about power and politics – which sometimes reminds him of the old crime beat. He joined the Daily News in 2005. And yes, he knows you’re not quite sure how to pronounce his last name. E-mail tips to gambacd@phillynews.com
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Jan Ransom, a native New Yorker, joined the Daily News in 2010 after graduating from Howard University. She has since written about the difficulty of filing police complaints, tax deadbeats and life after violent home invasions. She joined the Daily News City Hall Bureau in 2011 and has plunged headfirst into reporting on administration budget battles and City Council shenanigans. E-mail tips to ransomj@phillynews.com
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Sean Collins Walsh is from Bucks County and went to Northwestern University. He joined the Daily News copy desk in 2012 and now covers the Nutter administration. Before that, he interned at papers including The New York Times, The Dallas Morning News and The Seattle Times. E-mail tips to walshSE@phillynews.com
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