Racism and hate have no place in our community. The Oregon Public Library stands in solidarity with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) in our community.
Our mission statement: The Oregon Public Library is a welcoming and safe gathering place that meets the information, leisure, civic, and cultural needs of a diverse community. For more information, see our strategic plan: https://www.oregonpubliclibrary.org/strategic-plan.
We are publicly re-affirming our commitment to our mission. To support our mission, we will
- Continue to provide our staff training opportunities on the topics of racial equity, inclusion, and diversity in our annual continuing education plans as well as at our more frequent departmental meetings;
- Continue to review policies, procedures, and hiring practices, internally as well as reaching out to local organizations to seek feedback, to remove barriers to our library users, and create a welcoming, inclusive space;
- Provide programs for all ages that foster civic engagement and discussion;
- Recommend books and resources to help people of all races learn about systemic racism and oppression;
- Provide resources for parents and caregivers of all races to develop tools to talk to young people of all races about racism;
- Provide materials created by people with diverse racial backgrounds, including materials not originally written in English;
- Provide and recommend materials that reflect the historic and modern lives of BIPOC characters from varied backgrounds.
Please contact the library director Jennifer Way at jway [at] oregonlibrary.org (jway[at]oregonlibrary[dot]org) if you have a concern. The staff at the Oregon Public Library will listen, reflect, and learn to ensure we provide excellent service to all of our patrons.