To the Editor:

Re “Public Libraries Warn of a ‘Staggering’ Crisis” (news article, April 22):

As a former librarian and current social work student in New York, I was disheartened to read about the lack of funding for New York City’s libraries. Though libraries today are sometimes seen as outmoded institutions, in my experience they can still be transformative, especially for underserved populations.

Libraries serve not only as a resource for information about employment or housing, but they can also serve as a portal to new horizons, creating a shift in the way people view themselves and their lives.

As I have seen in my work in both fields, this is the most important step toward any type of change, individual or communal.

Though we may be tempted to think that the solutions to our social issues are found in the complexities of programming and policy making, let’s not underestimate the power of a library card.