It all started on a stoop, one of those summer days in Baltimore where it was too hot
to be inside with no AC, and it seemed like the heat had pushed
the entire neighborhood out onto their front stoops. I grabbed a book and started
reading to my nieces. After a few pages, other little heads started popping up
on the other side of the book. So of course, I invited
the neighborhood kids to join us. When I was finished reading,
the kids didn't want story time to stop. They asked me to read another book
and then another one. After a few rounds, I had had enough. So I said, You guys
can read a book at home. We don't have any books at home, was their overwhelming response. It was a harsh reminder that there are children who don't have
a single book at home. So what did I do about it? I started reading to the neighborhood
kids every weekend.

I called it Stoop Storytime, and the process inspired me
to begin working in the public library. However, as a public librarian, I quickly realized that the kids
that I saw coming into the library weren't the same ones I was reading to
out on my front stoop. I began researching and learned
about library barriers and something called book deserts. A book desert is an area or a community
with limited access to books and reading materials. I slowly realized that I wasn't
going to meet my neighbors who need it most inside library's walls. So I quit my job and took to the streets, becoming a radical street librarian. When I was putting this talk together, TED asked me, what exactly
is a radical street librarian? I was like, well, I sort of
made it up a few years ago, but it's a term I use to refer to anyone
doing work to increase literary access outside of traditional settings. As a radical street librarian

I'm making books appear in everyday
places in extraordinary ways. I install free, public
book vending machines, host street-corner story times, and pop up on the block
with free bookstores, so kids who don’t have McDonald’s money don't have to worry
about having book-fair money. I deeply believe in books
by any means necessary. So whether at a community basketball game, corner store, beauty supply,
or front stoop, I utilize my expertise as a librarian to curate collections that reflect
the kids reading them. This means books with characters
that look like them, talk like them, go to the same places,
speak the same languages. Book deserts are often found
in economically disadvantaged or rural areas, where bookstores and libraries are scarce. In higher-income communities, there are more books per child
than in low-income communities. For example, in Philadelphia's Chestnut Hill, a study found that there were
about 13 books for every child.

while in high-poverty communities
of the same city, it found up to 300 children
could share one book. We know communities with high illiteracy
rates are often plagued with poverty, poor health, and unemployment, while their literate
counterparts are healthier, with greater numbers of employment
and higher household incomes. So I know what you're thinking. There are plenty of bookstores
and libraries where I live. But here's the kicker: the presence of bookstores
and libraries in a neighborhood doesn't necessarily disqualify it
as a book desert. Lower-income neighbors may lack
the resources to purchase books from the bookstore or pay library fines. Residents may be working multiple jobs
or facing hardships that make a trip to the library
an additional stressor. Barriers like requirement
of identification, proof of address, fines, and fees, all while seemingly routine, can become substantial obstacles
for families facing hardships. There's also historical barriers, such as anti-literacy laws.

and library segregation policies that have excluded Black
communities for decades. Librarians understand that the habit of visiting libraries
is often a generational tradition. Many of the parents we see currently
bringing their kids into the library were once brought in by their parents
when they were children, and so on and so forth. But for Black communities
that faced arrest for reading, the impact of library segregation and anti-literacy laws lingers, and a hesitancy to visit libraries
still exists to this day. So what can be done
about book deserts and book access? Research tells us that increasing access
to appropriate print materials is an incredibly effective means
of enhancing the reading achievement of economically disadvantaged children. To put it plainly, the more books
a child has early access to, the more likely they are
to succeed as readers. Though I recently created the term,
being a street librarian is nothing new. I'm inspired by the many mobile
librarians who came before me.

I'm just a little more hood with it. (Laughter). One of my favorite stories
was born out of the Great Depression. The Pack Horse Library was created
to deliver books to residents living in geographically isolated areas. The librarians packed books
into feed sacks, saddle bags, and even old pillow cases, and they traveled on horse, mule, or foot into the mountains of rural Kentucky. These book women traveled
in rain, snow, and heat, and because there weren't roads, they navigated through creek beds
and along fence lines, often traveling up to 20 miles per day. Sometimes conditions were so harsh that a mule would succumb
to the weather. One book woman continued to walk
18 miles without her mule to deliver a book to a child
living in the mountain tops. One of the most popular items
in their library wasn't really a book at all, but something that the librarians
pieced together, a scrapbook from the most popular titles.

It contained quilt patterns, the latest fashion clippings, a recipe for opossum soup, and children’s stories. The Pack Horse librarians embodied the street hood librarian spirit by creating custom books that met their community's needs. Librarians haven't just relied on horseback either. We've employed elephants in the Elephant Mobile Library, ridden camels in Kenya to deliver books to nomadic tribes, and led dogs through the mountains of northern California. From bibliobikes in Augusta, Georgia, to Biblioburro in Colombia, libraries have taken diverse forms and adjusted to different cultures and landscapes. In China, there's a floating library made from converted fishing boats that serves as an island's first public library. And in Baltimore, you'll find me, the radical street librarian, striving to deliver books to your front stoop. Since its inception, my initiative has delivered 5,000 books to children living in book deserts.

(Applause) In case you're wondering
how to be a street librarian, here's what you can do. First, be radical. Share books in extraordinary ways
and think outside the box. Perhaps host a block party, book swap, or a story time at a local laundromat. Second, be street. Connect with your neighbors. Talk to people in your community. And third, embody
the spirit of a librarian. Get your library card, match books to readers
by considering their interests and experiences. I believe everyone is a reader. They just haven't found
the right book yet. (Applause) And that's where librarians step in. Many want to read but don't know
where to get started. And visiting the most magical
place on Earth, the library, can be intimidating for non-library goers. We must meet them where they are
and guide them along that journey. There is an ancient African proverb that when an old man dies,
a library burns.

For neighborhoods where stories
are passed down on front stoops, we must meet our neighbors
where they are. Thank you. (Applause)

A Street Librarian's Quest to Bring Books to Everyone | Storybook Maze | TED

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