A Safe Place in the Storm: Barbara Chappell-Brown on Libraries

This past April, the inaugural Be Mighty for Your Library Challenge brought schools and public libraries together to empower kids to “do three simple things: use their library, check out a book, and write a short poem about why their library matters.” EveryLibrary partnered with One Word at a Time and #1 New York Times best-selling author Kwame Alexander to celebrate his new book The Mighty Macy and show young library patrons how they can be mighty too.

The challenge encouraged young people to sign up for library cards, check out books, bring friends to the library, attend library programs, and write poems about their library to celebrate National Poetry Month.

Barbara Chappell-Brown, the teacher-librarian at Black Mountain Middle School who retired in June, participated in the Be Mighty for Your Library Challenge and was selected, along with her library and local community, as one of the inaugural winners. The challenge inspired her to collaborate more with her local public library: the Rancho Peñasquitos branch of the San Diego Public Library, also known as PQ Library. Branch Manager Uyen Tran hosted Mrs. Brown for a three-hour poetry workshop in their community room and displayed the poetry and artwork in the children’s area.

“PQ Library has been written up in The New York Times because of a patron who tried to ban LGBTQ books, but it didn’t work,” she tells us. “The community rallied and purchased new books for the library that the banning patron refused to return.”

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Mrs. Brown sees this challenge as a reminder that libraries need to stick together to share ideas, strategies, and resources. “You have to, in this disturbing climate of reduced funding for all libraries. Libraries are safe places in the storms that blow through our communities in real ways. Libraries also become shelters in bad weather.”

She was especially moved to see a little boy named Issac write his first acrostic poem. “I asked him to describe himself, and he told me that he was super fast. I included that when we were brainstorming. I love the enthusiasm of the little ones. They still love to read and to learn new things.” Across the country, libraries created poetry walls and encouraged young people to share why libraries matter to them.

Kwame Alexander compares libraries to rainbows during difficult times. Mrs. Brown sees rainbows as a symbol of hope for all kinds of people. “Today, the rainbow represents rebirth and a covenant from God,” she tells us. “The rainbow is used in many ways today to include the LGBTQ population, too. As a teacher-librarian, I try to be inclusive for all my students, regardless of background. I tried to include diverse books to represent my student population. Students need to see themselves represented in the books that they read. In addition, I have a sign in the front entrance of the library that reads, Everyone is welcome here.”

Mrs. Brown hopes that her positive experience participating in the Be Mighty for Your Library Challenge will galvanize others to do the same. When libraries come together for a common cause, the whole community benefits.

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“I hope that people understand that libraries are under attack because of lack of funding and conservative political pushback. It is important that our school board and government leaders do the jobs that the people voted them to do,” she tells us. “It is important to protect libraries and our democracy. Libraries provide resources to all members of the community. It is important to fund libraries so that we can continue to support all people in our communities with print, electronic resources, and more. Libraries are being asked to do more with less funding.”

Mrs. Brown also pointed out that libraries’ services to their local communities go far beyond books and what many people associate with libraries. “Some libraries also provide safe spaces for youth and cooling spaces for the elderly during the height of a hot summer,” she says. She also mentioned additional library resources such as programs for homeless youth, employment help for immigrants and low-income people, and hygiene products for those unable to afford them. Libraries also provide access to computers and printing — sometimes even 3D printing and technology classes.

“Please continue to support libraries in our communities, because it is so important not to have dry communities without them,” she says. “There will be no hope and no rainbows. I hope that doesn’t happen.”

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