Celebrate the history of queer communities in the United States this month! October was chosen to be LGBTQ History Month to honor the Marches on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights that took place in October of 1979 and 1987. On October 11th 1988, exactly one year after the second march, the United States first celebrated National Coming Out Day. Six years later, in 1994, National LGBTQ Month was founded by Rodney Wilson, and this year we celebrate LGBTQ History Month for the 27th year in a row.
While this celebration is relatively new, queer history is not! Historical nonfiction, biographies, and memoirs are all great ways to connect with local and national stories of empowerment and perseverance – check out the following lists to get started, and you can always give us a call or use our chat module if you’d like help finding more titles.
Every year, Banned Books Week celebrates freedom of information in public libraries. Banning books is censorship, and directly contradicts our mission to provide access for everyone.
Georgeby Alex Gino. Challenged, banned, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content, conflicting with a religious viewpoint, and not reflecting “the values of our community.”
Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and Youby Ibram X. Kendi and Jason Reynolds. Banned and challenged because of the author’s public statements and because of claims that the book contains “selective storytelling incidents” and does not encompass racism against all people.
All American Boysby Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. Banned and challenged for profanity, drug use, and alcoholism and because it was thought to promote antipolice views, contain divisive topics, and be “too much of a sensitive matter right now.”
Speakby Laurie Halse Anderson. Banned, challenged, and restricted because it was thought to contain a political viewpoint, it was claimed to be biased against male students, and it included rape and profanity.
To Kill a Mockingbirdby Harper Lee. Banned and challenged for racial slurs and their negative effect on students, featuring a “white savior” character, and its perception of the Black experience.
Of Mice and Menby John Steinbeck. Banned and challenged for racial slurs and racist stereotypes and their negative effect on students.
The Bluest Eyeby Toni Morrison. Banned and challenged because it was considered sexually explicit and depicts child sexual abuse.
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. Challenged for profanity, and because it was thought to promote an antipolice message.
Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the rich histories and incredible achievements of the Hispanic American and Latinx communities in the United States.
Did you know that the San Rafael Public Library is now fine-free? And that there is no minimum age needed to get a library card? Now you know! September is Library Card Sign-Up Month, so if you know someone without a card, spread the word that signing up is as easy as filling out this form. Did we mention it’s free?
Your SPRL card also gives you access to a huge selection of completely free online resources. Do you want to read eBooks? We’ve got tons available through Libby and Hoopla. Are you a big fan of movies? Kanopy has an amazing selection. Want to brush up on that language you started learning? Check out Mango. Online access to newspapers like the Washington Post or New York Times? Our resources have you covered. We also support your research with Ancestry.com, Archives Unbound, the California Digital Newspaper Collection, and more.
In July, the San Rafael City Council approved the elimination of daily fines for adult patrons, and the elimination of the $1 library card replacement fee. The library had already removed daily fines for children’s and youth materials in 2015. These changes to fines and fees will eliminate barriers and improve equity of access for all San Rafael residents. Additionally, the national trend of eliminating overdue fines has been found to not adversely affect the return of Library materials, but instead to increase the use of the Library and its resources.
Eliminating daily fines will align our practices with many libraries in the greater Bay Area and, most importantly, with the largest library in our consortium, Marin County Free Library (MCFL). A large percentage of San Rafael residents use the Marin County Free Library’s many locations as well as San Rafael Libraries. Being consistent with MCFL policy in this area will reduce confusion in communicating to patrons about this issue. Only San Anselmo and Mill Valley libraries still charge daily fines, so San Rafael users who request books from those locations could incur daily fines if their books are overdue. In addition, patrons will still be required to pay for damaged or lost materials, but the elimination of daily fines will hopefully remove a psychological and economic barrier to access that has previously prevented patrons from fully using all the library resources.
Marin County Registrar of Voters and Disability Rights California invite members of the disability community, family and friends to join a discussion on Marin County’s plan for changing elections in your county!
WHO: This is a public meeting open to all members of the disability community
WHEN: July 28, 2021 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
WHERE: Join us on Zoom: Meeting ID: 986 7226 2073 Password: 860438#
You can also join by: Phone: (669) 900-6833 or Toll free: (833) 548-0276
WHY: Come learn about how upcoming elections will change and give your input on how Marin County can ensure that voting is accessible to all voters.
ASL Interpretation and English captions will be provided for this meeting. For disability accommodations please phone (415) 473-6456 (Voice), CA Relay 711, or e-mail at: elections@MarinCounty.org by July 23.
Is it in excellent or very good condition? Would you see it in a used book store and consider purchasing it as a gift?
Cool book! Call the Friends of the San Rafael Public Library at (415)453-1443 to find out how to donate. Our Friends sell high-quality used books at the Friends Books Store–all proceeds go to fund San Rafael Public Library programs and services!
Does it have tears, yellowed pages, mold or is it in otherwise poor condition? Is it about a non-fiction topic that is no-longer relevant?
Sounds like this book has served its purpose and is ready to be properly and lovingly disposed of. By you!
Paperbacks can go directly into the recycling; remove the covers of hardback books before recycling the pages. Visit Marin Sanitary Service to learn more.
Do not leave unwanted books on library premises!
The library does not accept donations of used books; please don’t leave them as it creates additional work for staff and we cannot add them to our collection. Leaving books is illegal dumping and all abandoned items are disposed of.
Just for fun: Do you know what the library does with the books we de-select from our collection?
Our physical collection is confined to buildings, which have a finite amount of space. All libraries weed their collections on a regular basis to make room for fresh materials.
When we de-select a book, we send it to the Internet Archive! There the book is digitized, and made available to people around the world as an eBook! Transcendent, no?
Do you have an Internet Archive virtual card? It’s a great tool for finding any type of book, but especially obscure titles.
June is Pride month! Join us in celebrating queer authors and queer community. Are you a queer person in Marin of any age looking for community and resources? Visit our friends at the Spahr Center!
Enjoy this fun Drag Storytime from San Rafael Public Library’s own PrinceX Cakes:
Did you catch our 2020 online series, Ask a Queer Adult? Get wisdom and insight from queer folx who span the spectrum of LGBTQ+, as well as the spectrum of “adult”.
Looking for some excellent queer reads to keep you going all summer long? Check-out one of these lists made by staff from MARINet libraries. Shout-out to Corte Madera Librarian Ana for making the bulk of these!
Our favorite thing about summer is…more time for books! The June issue of BookPage is full of them, including remarkable reads from Casey McQuiston, Elin Hilderbrand, Clint Smith, Rita Williams-Garcia and more.
May is National Foster Care Month! Did you know that 40% of Marin County foster youth are placed outside of Marin? Learn more and find out how you can help!
Our friends from Foster Our Future are hosting Resource Family Orientations:
June 9 | July 7 | August 12
7-8:30 pm
Online via Zoom Register in advance
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