‘Libraries are islands of collective solidarity and the embodiment of socialism in a sea of capitalist consumption and individualism.’

In his 2017 documentary, Ex Libris, Frederick Wiseman explores the entire organisation of the New York Public Library, from its main branch in central Manhattan to the branch libraries in Harlem, it shows the flux of the library system ‘from the wonderful but passive repositories and spaces to education centres.’ This idea shows the fundamental problem of libraries in the 21st century, what are they, and who should they serve and cater to.

I grew up in libraries, spent every second I could in them, I dreamt of becoming a librarian and absolutely adore my current job as one. My obsession with libraries has changed over the years though. To begin with, my love of libraries were because of the books in them, which influenced and grew me into the person I am today. But as I have gotten older, and through working in them, I have come to understand that libraries are more than just books; they are pillars of our communities, inherently anti-capitalist ventures aiming to give free access to the resources that people need to survive in this day and age.

Whilst books still play a key role in the library system, the library’s largest role in the 21st century is to provide easy access to computers and the internet for people who do not have those things, thus allowing people to continue with their lives in our new digital age. As well as being open spaces for the community, they offer themselves as a safe haven for the homeless or people who are in need, with free access to books or computers to spend their days out of the rain or the cold with a book, interact with the librarians and feel human again. This is not a perfect system at the moment, for example, the community spaces in my library are primarily being occupied by the council, senior management of our parent charity, and other charities. This then leaves only two unoccupied meeting rooms and spaces to hold events or to use for community planning thus undermining the ideas of it being a community hub. What is needed is for the libraries to decide what the spaces should be used for, not just for monetary gain but for community good.

Libraries are the bastion of anti-capitalism in our neoliberal age, primarily through the model in which they work. Erik Olin Wright, in his 2015 article for Jacobin entitled ‘How to be an anticapitalist today’, compares the model of the library to that of the bookshop in which he presents it as a comparison between the system of capitalism embodied by the bookshop (to each according to ability to pay) and a system of socialism embodied by the library (to each according to their need). They treat people as equals and try to support them.

This is why it is such a warning sign for us on the left that many libraries are being closed down or, like my library, being taken over by a private charity to try and run the system to turn a profit out of an entity that is inherently anti-profit. The dwindling amount of libraries, and the cutting of funds through the austerity tactics of the Tories, shows a clear disregard of the importance of libraries amongst the elite. Even if there is a spending increase by a Labour government, as we have always seen, it will lead to a Tory spending cut when they next get elected which puts the protection of libraries into a precarious position. They are a key element to the socialist struggle. Karl Marx relied upon libraries in the 1860s as much as a refugee learning English does nowadays. The solution to this issue would be to put funding for public libraries beyond the reach of any political party, to ensure it cannot be tampered with, a system of collective ownership of these institutions should be our way forwards . This would ensure the protection of the library system from the forces of neoliberalism. However, this seems unlikely in the short term, so my suggestion would be to everyone: keep going to your local libraries, keep them filled to the rafters with people, ensure that they are used and loved and are able to keep being key parts of our communities, and keep them acting as models for socialism for all.