Empty Shelves Concern Manistee County Commissioner Candidate
I had a panic attack earlier this week at the library.
When I went to get a book that I was thinking about checking out for some time, it was gone. All the shelves were empty with signs announcing their replacement… DVDs and audio books. This process was explained by a library employee, “If a book hasn’t been checked out in the past five years, it is removed from the collection. I don’t like it either, but this has been the policy for quite a while now.”
Who’s to blame? After all, the new library directory only recently inherited this problem: “I just want to make this library pretty. When I came here, the shelves were already bare… only 2-3 books per shelf.”
This is true. There used to be 20-30 books per shelf over a year ago. The majority of these had already been removed before she even came here and been secretly funneled across the street to be sold by a group called “friends” of the library.
The new director talked to me about her plans for the library, which seemed impressive on the surface, until she said, “I would prefer you had come to me in private to discuss your concerns [without them becoming public].”
To which, came a quick responsive, “NO! These things should be public. This is a community library.” I politely ended our conversation and decided to follow the books.
Upset by the thought of our community’s rare and priceless treasures being sold for nickels and dimes at a tented rummage sale, I was quickly referred to the group’s president.She described the difficulties of actually finding a book’s value and that she has to rely on her 35 years of experience. “No book is sold for under a dollar, but we cannot sell them at their value. They are priced to sell.”
Then, I got to know why all these women are volunteering their Wednesday afternoons sorting through boxes and boxes of discarded books. They do it for their own personal love of books, and from one degree or another, their sadness over what has been happening here through the years.
“We have tried to reason with the library board. Once, we had over 30 people show up for their meeting. They gave us our two minutes at the beginning and then went on without answering or responding to us. They said they didn’t have to.”
The library board is correct. They are not accountable to our community. They are not elected by the people. They are appointed by our County Commissioners. So, should we blame the commissioners? The sad fact is, no. Two of the current commissioners ran on an “anti-library” platform. If anything, we should commend these commissioners not for their actions, but for the fact that they (at least in this point) are that rare breed called honest politicians.
The fact that most of the seats in our local elections are run unopposed, places the blame back on us. It may be too late to save and preserve our old books. They are gone. But, there are still other treasures in our community that need our protection and preservation.
Until we get involved, there is no one to blame but ourselves. Think about it. I am… don’t be surprised if you find my name on a ballot!
Editor’s Note: Since writing this article, David Holmer has filed for Manistee County Commissioner. He will run as a Libertarian in the 2018 election. For more information, click here, or see David Holmer’s Facebook page.
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