Let's Be Honest About Libraries

Like most professors, I love libraries. From story time when I was little and later volunteering at my local library as a Boy Scout to my book filled carrel while a graduate student, to appreciating the deep collections of humanity scattered in libraries around the globe, libraries are sacred places to myself and many others.

In recent years, academics, community activists, and urban planners have regarded libraries as critical pieces of social infrastructure; institutions that shape the way people interact and engage with their communities by providing not only books and internet access but welcoming spaces for every possible demographic. One scholar went so far as to call libraries "'the best exemplars’ of our collective life."

If libraries represent the nation’s life, however, it is no wonder that so many Americans are managing an epidemic of loneliness, a friendship recession, and ongoing civic decline. The fact of the matter is that libraries today are not the great spaces of civic mixing they are often believed to be. In reality, libraries are not widely visited and used and are far less central to community building than their biggest supporters would like to believe.

A new national survey from the Survey Center on American Life explores connections in American communities and the data is unambiguous: Libraries are not significant to the lives of Americans whatsoever. Only 7% of Americans visit libraries weekly while 22% report visiting libraries at least once or twice a month; hardly a large number. Almost six in 10 (59%) Americans report they seldom or never visit their local public library, with 32% — the plurality in the sample — saying they never do, bringing into question the purported centrality of these public spaces.

The lack of interest in libraries is a widespread phenomenon. There are, for instance, no real generational differences — younger cohorts of Americans are as likely to visit the library as their grandparents are. About a fifth of every generational cohort report visiting their local library at least once or twice a month.

Likewise, there are only minor variations when income is considered. Americans who earn over 150K annually report visiting libraries as often as those who earn under 60K. Political differences are also minor — just 8% of liberals and 5% of conservatives visit libraries weekly. Even families with children between 2 and 5 and are welcomed with play areas and regular, free activities: just 8% report weekly visits.

Geographic differences do not exist either. Despite being surrounded by small colleges and charming bookstores, New England residents do not use their libraries any more frequently than other Americans do. Urban differences do not matter either; whether one lives in a small city suburb, big city, or rural area, people are not visiting libraries at variable rates.

Even proximity to a library matters minimally. Only 10% of Americans who live within walking distance to a community center or library report visiting the library weekly, as well as 6% of Americans who are within a 5 to 10-minute drive or trip on public transportation. Around 5% of those who are 30 minutes away or longer report weekly visits, revealing that even for those who can easily pop in, public spaces like libraries are not a destination of choice in many communities.

Differences do emerge when educational levels are considered. Twenty-five percent of those with college degrees and 30% of those with post-graduate degrees visit the library on a monthly basis, but just 17% of those with a high school degree or less do the same.

Religious differences emerge as well, with Catholics and Protestants being about half as likely to regularly visit the library as LDS and Jews. These numbers are still very small for all groups: Barely 10% of each group visit their local library at least weekly.

The survey also asked Americans about “third places” — social and communal spaces that one frequents that is not one’s work or home — it is the case that over half (56%0 of Americans have such a place. But few Americans listed libraries as such places. Instead, almost a third (29%) of Americans report that a coffee shop or café serves as a community anchor for them. Another 29% say a bar or restaurant is their third place, while about a quarter (24%) of Americans report it is a community park or garden. Just 3% say their third place is their local library, contrary to the narrative that libraries serve many people with varied backgrounds, needs, and interests.

I take little pleasure in sharing these findings. Libraries have always been and forever will be fixtures in my life, as well as my children’s; my son adored attending library story time before the pandemic. But to help libraries grow, thrive, and truly become the common goods that so many would like them to be, we need to recognize that they are not yet the community anchors many believe they are.

Samuel J. Abrams is a professor of politics at Sarah Lawrence College and a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.