She Threw A Party in the Stacks
Reflecting on last month’s library birthday bash, sharing party favors, and political education resources.
Having fun isn’t hard when you’ve got a library card! Last month, I celebrated my 24th birthday at the Harold Washington Chicago Public Library. My festivities took inspiration from the PBS Kids classic Arthur, and I invited my family and friends to the 8th-floor Arts Level to enjoy one of my favorite pastimes, getting lost in the stacks and discovering the potential of our public spaces. My objective was a light-hearted Sunday where party-goers would leave in tune with their inner child, aligned with the ancestors, armed with a reading list, educated on current political conflicts, and equipped with a library card, understanding the power they yield as knowledge bearers and public resources warriors.
I know bitches go all in for their birthdays, but I am just warming up to the idea of celebrating myself. If a library party doesn’t explain my true introverted nature, I don’t know what does. Planning this birthday had me reflecting on my early memories in my beloved book haven. I was a shy child raised in my local library; it was a quiet community sanctuary where I found like minds and career inspiration early. Beyond the books, I learned to knit as the youngest member of an intergenerational fiber arts club, and both attended and led poetry camps at the library. These days, I consider library cards a collectible. I’ve filled my wallet with options from every city I’ve lived in, allowing me to check out books, camera equipment, and power tools, access makers’ spaces, streaming services, and even cop free museum admission. My welcome zine got guests familiar with the CPL offerings, explaining how to get a library card, where to access free printing, find board games, and, along the way, see Black art offerings from the likes of Faith Ringgold, Jacob Lawrence, and Alison Saar completing a scavenger hunt of my faves from the library’s renowned public art collection.
Utilizing these public resources was also strategic for me planning a party with no budget. I invited my personal public to a free and open third space with no reservations or bar minimum needed. The concept of third spaces, transaction-free and within the community, neither home nor work, has been in recent discourse as we’re back outside post-pandemic. People feel the unwelcoming air of businesses booting lingering patrons in trade for quick transactions. It’s gotten to the extent that coffee shops no longer have convenient power outlets, and restaurants have a time limit on tables. Limited community space is nothing new; I responded to this issue on the SAT in a long answer question, engaging Zadie Smith’s essay, “The North West London Blues,” which highlights the value of public libraries and why they should remain open. This text seems even more timely when I read about the attacks on Critical Race Theory, librarians indefinitely out of work in Texas, the New York Public Library System closing on Sundays due to budget cuts, and Israel’s destruction of over 13 libraries in Gaza since October 7th, 2023. A recent report covered by Lit Hub explains that “the destruction of cultural heritage in Gaza impoverishes the collective identity of the Palestinian people, irrevocably denies them their history, and violates their sovereignty.” Reading how literacy and access to knowledge are tied to human sovereignty, I believe it’s a violation not to take advantage of the cultural history we have access to.
Party activities included Black culture coloring sheets, small crafts and friendship bracelets, an art scavenger hunt throughout the library, a station of political education featuring zines about Palestine and the Congo, and two tables with prompts collecting community book recommendations. We’ll get to the reading list later. First, I wanted to ensure The Joi of Art readers can join the fun. Click here to browse zines on Palestine and community organizing. Download and print coloring sheets here.
It was a joy watching my family and friends meet and mingle, color together, blow bubbles, and gush about their favorite reads. My dad exclaimed, ‘That’s what I’m talking about!’ after reading a zine on STOP COP CITY. My Uncle D quickly claimed a picture of Nipsey, saying it was his first time coloring since early grade school. Kids came on play dates, friends pulled up on their lunch hour, and folks showered me with so much love. My Uncle Ben remembered his late mother, Karen Sophie Sylve, who passed days before my party. He colored a vibrant picture of a Black woman adorned with flowers enjoying a cigar, capturing my Aunt's spirit and adding the image to our community altar. I asked guests to recommend texts by ancestral authors whose words serve as spirit guides then Lukumí Priest Andres L. Hernandez facilitated an altar-making workshop. It was important for me to invite the ancestors to the party. While bringing in another year, I chose to celebrate those who lived our history, survived, and scribed their lives, leaving a record in our memories, archives, hearts, minds, eyes, personal lives and in our local libraries.
