Statement on Serving Marginalized Individuals

As public libraries, we are committed to providing inclusive public spaces where everyone feels safe, welcome and valued. We offer resources, programs, and services to all members of our community and seek to provide opportunities for social inclusion. We respect the rights of all individuals to access information, participate in programming, and engage with the community regardless of race, citizenship, income level, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, including those living with a disability, addiction, mental illness, or experiencing homelessness.

We achieve this by:

• Recognizing each individual’s unique abilities and capacity to engage in society, striving towards creative solutions to address barriers for marginalized individuals to support successful participation in our libraries and communities.
• Seeking meaningful engagement, dialogue, and collaboration with marginalized individuals to shape and inform library programs, services, policies and practices.
• Reducing stigma and raising awareness of the challenges facing marginalized individuals to live with dignity as part of a thriving and caring community.
• Facilitating collaboration, communication, and networking with community agencies, organizations, and advocacy groups to improve and enhance library service for marginalized individuals.
• Providing training to support staff awareness, comfort, and competencies in serving marginalized individuals.
• Encouraging information and resource sharing amongst library professionals to improve our collective ability to provide service to marginalized individuals.