Sunday December 2, 2012 The Human Library

Walk into any branch of the Thunder Bay Public Library any day of the week and you can be sure it will be filled with activity. The library excels at promoting and teaching new technologies to meet demands. This could explain why TBPL like other Canadian libraries is thriving in both patrons and lending stats. The library continues to do innovative things that meet changing needs. Some of these include genealogy classes, one-on-one Internet training sessions, Facebook coaching, iHelp with iPads, iPod Touches or any new gadget, and the Human Library.


A Human Library? What is that you might ask. It began in 1993, in Copenhagen, Denmark, when five young people created a movement called Stop the Violence. They came together when one of their friends was injured in a stabbing. The outcome of this incident was twofold. Most importantly their friend survived. Second, these friends decided to do something about racial violence. By communicating and raising awareness, the group soon had an organization comprising 30,000 members from all over Denmark.

In 2000 this organization was asked to arrange activities for the Roskilde Festival, a music festival held annually in Denmark. The vision was to encourage unbiased dialogue amongst the festival visitors through one-on-one conversations. From this emerged the Human Library. And then it grew.

The Human Library concept has now spread around the world. Events have been held in Norway, Hungary, Portugal, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, England, Ukraine, Italy, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Belgium, Austria, Poland, Serbia, Spain, Netherlands, Scotland, United States, New Zealand, Romania, Lithuania and Canada. Human Books may now be checked out at public libraries.

A Human Library is simply a way for people to connect with individuals they may not typically talk to. Library visitors have the opportunity during a planned event to borrow Human Books and engage in conversation. These Human Libraries celebrate differences and promote tolerance. The Human Books themselves are volunteers, willing to share their stories with others in a safe environment.

The first Human Library in Thunder Bay was held at the Waverley Resource Library on Saturday October 27, 2012. The Library partnered with CBC Radio 88.3 to bring this event to life. Fifty-three people came to "read" ten Human Books. The choices for Human Books are wide and varied. This event included a police officer, a muslim woman, a tattoo apprentice, a litigation lawyer, a transgender person, a recovering drug addict, a young aboriginal from a Northern community, a person living with a mental illness, an Ojibway elder and a person living with a disability.

Guidelines are relatively simple. The Reader must be respectful. The Human Book can leave the conversation if he or she feels the Reader is treating him or her in an inappropriate manner. The loan period is 20 minutes. The Reader cannot record or take pictures of the Human Book. And the Reader is not allowed to ask the Human Book for personal contact information. Questions might sound like this. Could you tell me about yourself? What is a typical day like for you? What is a good thing happening in your life right now? What makes it good? How do you deal with adversity? Do you have any advice for someone going through a situation similar to yours?

What is that saying … you can never really know someone until you walk a mile in their shoes? How about taking your shoes off and having a 20 minute conversation. Chances are you’ll learn something. There will be another Human Library event on Saturday January 26th, at the Mary J.L. Black Library. Check the Library's Web site as well as CBC Radio's Web site for more details. And feel free to walk in.

Caron E. Naysmith