This Was 2020
What role can the public library play in publishing community voices and creating communitas? The year 2020 was especially difficult for Minnesotans as we weathered the COVID-19 pandemic and George Floyd's murder amidst a highly volatile political climate.
Librarians at Ramsey County Library wanted to help connect our community members with each other and us during lockdowns, and this book project became a way to focus some conversations around our shared experiences.
The book as a published object also serves as documentation of community voices, offering our future selves and generations to reflect on some of the most challenging moments of recent times. This presentation offers the story of this book project and the various goals of collecting and connecting community voices.
Paul Lai is a librarian and coordinator of public programs for adults at Ramsey County Library in Shoreview. Previously, he has worked as an editor and web designer for an online university's writing center, as a faculty member in English at the University of St. Thomas, and in assorted library positions at Hennepin County Library, Minneapolis College, and the Center for Transportation Studies at the University of Minnesota.
Read the book for free online: