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You know, I really wish we'd stop thinking that simply telling good stories about the impact and benefit of #libraries will save them.
The sad truth in the world is that the only things that get saved are the things with political power and influence.
The sad truth in the world is that the only things that get saved are the things with political power and influence.
Political power and influence only come from two sources: People and Money.
Without one of those, you don’t have political power.
With people, you can rally people to pressure politicians to take action. With money, you can make campaign contributions, etc…
Without one of those, you don’t have political power.
With people, you can rally people to pressure politicians to take action. With money, you can make campaign contributions, etc…
#Librarianship, as an industry, has neither.
No organization in the United States has EVER attempted to build a network of political power through people and money in order to build the political power and influence needed to keep library doors open (except @EveryLibrary).
No organization in the United States has EVER attempted to build a network of political power through people and money in order to build the political power and influence needed to keep library doors open (except @EveryLibrary).
It’s not anyone’s fault, we only recently had to fight for political power because the voters were on our side. But we’ve lost more than 14% of voter support for libraries in the last 10 years.
Now, more than 42% of Americans are likely to vote against #library taxes (up from 26% in 2008).
I'm not making this up: https://www.oclc.org/research/awareness-to-funding-2018.html
And we see these same results in the local polling we do for local elections for libraries.
I'm not making this up: https://www.oclc.org/research/awareness-to-funding-2018.html
And we see these same results in the local polling we do for local elections for libraries.
Once that number moves above 50%, on average, across the country, we are going to see the complete collapse of the library industry.
Local politicians will also no longer feel the pressure to fund libraries if voters don’t care about them being funded and voter funded libraries won’t get the votes they need to win ballot initiatives for library funding.
If a politician can close libraries without the public fighting back, then they will.
It doesn’t matter if the library cures cancer.
If the public doesn’t rally around the library then the politician can just safely say that they saved the community from the dreaded “taxes.”
It doesn’t matter if the library cures cancer.
If the public doesn’t rally around the library then the politician can just safely say that they saved the community from the dreaded “taxes.”
That's why we need to start rebuilding this voter and political support and that comes from money and people, not just telling people about the good things that the library does and then hoping that people take action.
It doesn’t matter how “good” your library work is.
Without connections, without money, without influence, nobody will take action on your behalf.
This means that you have to take the time to identify, cultivate, and empower your super supporters.
From Awareness to Funding:
Without connections, without money, without influence, nobody will take action on your behalf.
This means that you have to take the time to identify, cultivate, and empower your super supporters.
From Awareness to Funding:
Of course, I added the "identify" part of this because we have absolutely ZERO idea who our supporters are and we can't cultivate and empower them if we don't even know who they are or what they look like.
We've never taken the time to build data driven models of library voters like nearly every other industry and/or cause related organization does.
Which means our campaigns are wildly expensive/inefficient because both Republicans and Democrats will vote for or against libraries
Which means our campaigns are wildly expensive/inefficient because both Republicans and Democrats will vote for or against libraries
The big problem is that all of our tools and platforms are built around getting people to use libraries.
But the reality is that people that use libraries are no more likely to vote for them than non-users.
But the reality is that people that use libraries are no more likely to vote for them than non-users.
We need tools and platforms that build identify, cultivate, and empower our supporters.
That takes a LOT of work and time and a lot more than hanging a Libraries Transform or Geek the Library Poster above the drinking fountain.
That takes a LOT of work and time and a lot more than hanging a Libraries Transform or Geek the Library Poster above the drinking fountain.
