Queens Borough President Marshall and John Hyslop, president of Queens Library Guild Local 1321 at the Central Library. Representatives of Queens Library Guild Local 1321,  library supporters including Borough President Helen Marshall and members of the
community rallied at Queens Library in Jamaica today to support restoring
proposed cuts to the library budget last week.

If not restored, the proposed cut of 31% would mean reducing library service to
unthinkable levels, including: layoff of 605 people who provide critical public
services, 18 libraries in Queens closed altogether, 30 libraries closed 4 or 5
days per week, only one library in Queens open on Saturdays, no Sunday library
service in Queens at all, people in Queens would have much less access to use Queens Library President/CEO Thomas W. Galante and John Hyslop, president of Queens Library Guild Local 1321.
computers, borrow materials, get homework help, prepare for a new job and so
many other important library services.

 
“As we near the end of the budget adoption process, we must not forget that a
library is an important resource for every neighborhood. It’s a place to learn,
read, explore, and broaden new visions and learn how to achieve your goals and
ambitions. Libraries here in Queens, America’s most diverse county, also bridge
the gap for new immigrants to assimilate in a multicultural society, while
providing veteran visitors with the tools they need to build a better future for
a new generation.  These threatened cuts must be restored  to enable libraries
to stay open with full services and programs for the hundreds of thousands of
visitors who come through their doors,” said Borough President Helen Marshall.

Council Member Leroy Comrie remarked, "Public libraries play a significant and
vital role throughout the city. The Central Library in Queens provides students
a place to do their homework after school, a facility for non-profits to
implement their programs, and ensures free access to the internet for people who
are unable to go online at home. The cuts proposed by Mayor Bloomberg will put
the thousands of New Yorker's who frequent libraries, looking to improve their
well-being, at a disadvantage. The administration should restore funding to
libraries and not cause further damage to institutions that provide educational,
cultural, and economic resources to our community."

"Cutting nearly $100 million in funding to New York City's top affordable
educational institutions is just dead wrong," said Council Member Jimmy Van
Bramer, Chair of the New York City Council's Cultural Affairs and Libraries
Committee. "New York City deserves a budget that invests in its libraries not
one that slashes much-needed funding from easily accessible educational,
cultural and social programming. By cutting this funding now, at time when all
City residents' budgets are tight, the proposed budget will deprive millions of
people of affordable programming that has been established to uplift our local
communities. We cannot allow this to happen. I will continue to fight to restore
these budget cuts with my colleagues in the New York City Council because our
constituents and communities deserve more."

Queens Library President & CEO Thomas Galante said, “People in Queens need and
use their libraries. Libraries make an enormous impact on the educational and
economic landscape. Libraries provide a great return-on-investment. We are
calling on the community to speak up for Queens Library and write to their
elected officials, asking them to keep library doors open in every community.”

Queens Library Guild Local 1321 President John Hyslop said, “The library workers
provide an amazing amount of free resources to everyone. If this budget cut were
to become reality, library workers would be laid off and that would devastate
service to our great customers.”

Library customers were asked to come to the microphone and tell the world what
the library means to them.  Staff read from letters and postcards that had been
written in support of library funding. One letter, from a child named Quamahli,
said, “… This is a library close to my house so I don’t have to walk a far
distance. This library is my favorite. It has computers, books and a quiet area
to think. That’s like saying that you are going to take away my house.” Another,
from Emilyon, said: “It is a beautiful experience to read the library books and
they are wonderful to read.“
 
Queens Library is an independent, not-for-profit corporation and is not
affiliated with any other library. Queens Library serves a population of 2.3
million in one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the U.S. and has among
the highest circulations of any public library system in the world. For more
information about programs, services, locations, events and news, visit the
Queens Library web site at www.queenslibrary.org or phone 718-990-0700. Queens
Library. Enrich your life(r)