“Once upon a time, it was a trendy thing in libraries to say that building diverse collections was a good thing because patrons deserve to see themselves reflected in our collections. And we librarians could feel good, bordering on self-righteous, that we were helping those less fortunate. Turns out, the people most in need of seeing diverse characters were those same librarians—and the entire community at large. Everyone needs to see diverse characters in real life, having their troubles, wishing, longing, fighting, losing, and living just like every other character. Books with a grand message at the end, and books about nothing at all, like Seinfeld: they’re all necessary to create a well-rounded and accurate reflection of life in underrepresented communities.”
[Via]
