I am writing in response to Mr. Grant’s letter of opposition to a new Greenfield Public Library, published on Dec. 8.
I was struck by his insistence that “liberals,” whatever he may mean by that, are the only ones in this area who support a new public library for Greenfield. I’ve used the current library quite a bit in my 20 years living in Franklin County, and I’ve sat among quite a variety of people using its services, including some who might be homeless taking advantage of what it has to offer them.
Also, I hope that he was being facetious saying that “the fact that every printed word…is available online,” because I don’t believe that to be true. And even if it were, some people would still need to use a library to read those words on the computers there. And almost lastly, why does he assume that Hawks and Reed, and other such commercial venues in Greenfield, would simply donate the use of their space and facilities for events that the GPL offers for free to its patrons, and that all of those patrons can simply afford to buy books to read, if they could find them in area bookstores, including those out of print?
I was the person who wrote to the Editorial Board at The Boston Globe this past August to notify them of the people in tents on the Greenfield Common, that led to they’re publishing two stories, including photographs and interviews, that brought more exposure to the reality of insufficient housing for many individuals and families in Greenfield. Homelessness is a complex issue that requires many people in various sectors of our society to sufficiently address, and making a choice to close “outdated” libraries and convert them to serve as homeless shelters would be removing highly valued libraries to address the issue, creating a band-aid solution and an absence of resources for everyone, including those who are homeless.
In closing, I am wondering if the “Rev.” before Mr. Grant’s name is an abbreviation for “reviler”, because that was the attitude I read in his letter.
Russell Pirkot
Greenfield