Public libraries were unofficial day shelters for the homeless long before computerized search engines replaced card catalogues and encyclopedias went in and out of vogue. As silent sanctuaries of learning situated in urban places, the buildings provide safe spaces for citizens – both sheltered and unsheltered – to take a rest, use the bathroom, warm up in the winter and cool off in the summer, learn valuable information and entertain themselves. As the DC public libraries work to better meet the needs of their patrons, the homeless population’s interactions with the system are being taken into account.
The DC public library system has seen more use of the facilities by homeless individuals since affordable city housing has decreased. The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, the District’s main branch, is a daily stop for the United Planning Organization’s transportation service that offers shuttle services to over one thousand unsheltered individuals.
Some homeless patrons stay in the library all day after getting off of the shuttle around 7 a.m.
Lee, a homeless library patron, wishes he could stay longer.
“I’m wondering why the library isn’t [open] 24/7… a day shelter would be a good option, but it isn’t an option,” he said.
With its rising intake of patrons like Lee, the library has run into problems much more serious than overdue books.
On 11 a.m. on a Tuesday, a pile of clothing sat in the corner of a women’s restroom stall. Patrons occupied tables while staring blankly and rocking back and forth to stay awake. The foyer smelled like aerosol deodorant.
“There’s a lot of traffic in the bathrooms… a lot of things happen in [them], from smoking to sex,” Lee said.
The library system recently hired a social worker, Jean Badalamenti, to provide professional support while working with unhoused patrons.
“There is no day shelter downtown. The library needs to be engaged on a city level on how we’re going to engage with the homeless,” Badalamenti explained.
One of her first tasks is to train staff members on how to better serve homeless library patrons.
“The library hired 100 new people when we expanded hours last fall, and these people come from all over the country who might not have experience working in an urban library environment,” Badalamenti stated.
The library already offers services like an adult literacy resource center, a workshop for unemployed patrons, and computer classes. These activities are designed for public participation but might not cater to the unsheltered.
“A lot of the programs [happen] after the hours that I have to be back at the shelter… that kind of leaves [the homeless population] out,” Lee remarks.
“Do we need to do distinctive programing [for the homeless]? Do we go out into shelters? Librarians go out and do work at DC General… That relationship exists, but how do we expand on that?” Badalamenti asked. She voiced concern about the privacy of patrons.
And she acknowledged that as public libraries stretch themselves to aid the homeless, they can’t leave their other patrons’ needs unmet.
“We want the library to be a safe place for everyone… [there are] rules for behavior that everyone needs to follow, including people with homes,” Badalamenti said.
The DC public library system recently implemented policies aimed at helping to ensure its spaces stay clean and safe. The policies ban improper use of restrooms, placement of personal belongings in obstructive areas, sleeping, toting large personal items that exceed a certain measurement and having an odor that can be detected from six feet away, among other things.
“I’m a huge advocate of people needing two hours to take a nap. The library isn’t that place,” said Badalamenti.
Reviews of the library’s policy enforcement are mixed.
Woody, a formerly homeless patron who used the library’s resources to find a job, thinks the “[library] security does an excellent job.” Thomas, a daily visitor of the library, thinks the librarians have “a good attitude,” though he regularly sees them ask patrons to leave.
Nesha, a middle school student who spends time reading at the library a few times a week, said “This one security guard tapped [her] on the head [and asked her to wake up], but [she] wasn’t asleep.”
Although the DC public library system is making efforts to help its homeless patrons, city officials note that the largest issue that needs to be addressed is that the library is not, after all, an actual day shelter, and should not continue to be used that way.
The library plans on collaborating with other service organizations and providers to obtain good referral information for people who may need it, which could not only benefit the people receiving the information, but also the other patrons who might be turned off by someone using the library for a purpose other than its intended use.
“If someone is sleeping… we want to be able to tell people where they can go to get two hours of rest during the day [and] if we’re telling people that they need to shower… we’ve got to be able to tell people where they can go,” Badalamenti said.
Last month, Friends of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, a group of DC residents who support the library’s use and programming, met with librarians and homeless advocates to consider the best approaches the library can take to help the unsheltered population.
The issue is expected to be one of the topics discussed at the District’s Interagency Council on Homelessness’ next meeting on August 19th. Quite fittingly, the meeting will take place at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library downtown.
Sarah, a first-time patron who sits in the library listening to an iPod and studying a college textbook while sharing a table with a blank-faced homeless patron, thinks the space is fine.
“[The library is] better than I thought it would be based on the reviews I read,” she said.
