Libraries and the Homeless

Libraries are a public space for all in which access to information is paramount. Understandably, many unsheltered people take refuge in public libraries because they are safe, comfortable, welcoming, and climate-controlled, in addition to having valuable services, programs, and endless sources of information. But there are opportunities for libraries to not just include the homeless as patrons, but enable better access and services for this underserved population.

The homeless population of several cities has greatly increased over the last few years, and many public library systems have stepped up to the challenges of keeping their libraries accessible to all patrons, or becoming so if they weren't already. In Library Journal, Editor-in-Chief Rebecca T. Miller discusses barriers of access to information that the homeless face, and ways that those barriers can be eliminated or reduced. Two of the services mentioned are facilitating better access to showers and restrooms and enabling parents and caregivers to use computers for job seeking while their children play nearby. Making the library more usable for all helps remove the barriers to access to information. Miller suggests that it is not enough just to search for gaps in access, but that library staff need to go beyond and think of limitations of access as not just a challenge for patrons, but for public institutions to address and attempt to overcome (8).

The PBS report “Quiet Comfort” introduces us to the United States’ first full-time library social worker. This is another way that the San Francisco Public Library has assessed the needs of its patrons and adapted its staffing and services to help the community have maximum access to information.




How has your public library changed its services and programs to better meet the needs of your community's unsheltered population? What services do you think would be beneficial at your location? Tell us in the comments!

Works Cited

Miller, Rebecca T. “Real-World Barriers.” Library Journal, vol. 140, no. 16, Oct. 2015, p. 8. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=109996174&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

“Quiet Comfort: Library Social Worker Helps Homeless Seeking Quiet Refuge.” YouTube, PBS, 28 Jan. 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOeBLhs5Jko.