Books celebrating diversity donated to library
Magness Library was recently chosen by the National Endowment for the Humanities to receive the 2008 We the People ‘Created Equal’ Bookshelf.
The library was one of 3,000 libraries across the country to receive this year’s bookshelf, a set of 17 classic books on the theme of ‘Created Equal.’
The library also received four of these books in Spanish translations, a ‘History in a Box’ resource kit on Abraham Lincoln created by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, and supplementary programming materials, including bookplates, bookmarks, and posters.
Congressman Lincoln Davis was on hand to dedicate this addition to the library and said he is pleased local children will now have access to these materials, and a wonderful facility like Magness Library to explore them.
‘When you look at this library and you realize that everyone in Warren County can come here and search from the knowledge that’s here on the history of mankind,’ Davis said. ‘Then you begin to understand why we the people, here in Warren County and in America, believe in keeping knowledge available, believe in keeping our libraries open. It’s one of the most important things we can do, and that’s why this award is called the ‘We the People Bookshelf.’
Magness Library board chairperson Pat Bigbee said the books provide a way for local children to explore their heritage and the heritage of other ethnic groups, and the struggles some have experienced along the way.
‘Of course it’s history,’ Bigbee said, ‘and not all of our history has been good, but we hope we’ve learned from the mistakes that were made in the past. I think it’s wonderful that children, and people of all ages actually, can learn from these books. There are a lot of children’s books included which help the children kind of understand, though they have no way to even imagine the way things used to be at this point.
‘But I think it’s wonderful that it gives them the opportunity to begin at their level to explore some of our history, the good and the bad, and hopefully learn from it.’
Library board member Rachel Killebrew says she is inspired by the egalitarian nature of the books provided by the program, and by the designation ‘We the People Bookshelf.’
‘That means everybody,’ Killebrew said. ‘It includes every minority, every race, every creed, every color, every age, and that’s what makes it such a good resource. We’re really pleased to be a part of this.’