I was born in the Northview Heights Housing Project in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Pittsburgh is where Andrew Carnegie made most of his money and he built nine out of the 2,500 libraries that bore his name. At one point, the “Carnegie library system” was responsible for 75-80 percent of every library in the nation. In Pittsburgh, there was no such thing as the “Pittsburgh Library System”. It was the “Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh“. I went there always. When I moved to Chicago at 12, I was stunned to learned you could have a library that didn’t have a prefix of “Carnegie-“.
Walking into the main branch, one walks beneath the words, “Free to the people”.
Growing up in the distressed North Side, an altar boy at Annunciation Catholic Church in the post-Vatican II early 70s, these weren’t just words to me. I was infused, in a completely non-theatrical way that felt utterly normal, with a dedication to social justice that is still the best expression of urban American Catholicism. A deep sense of service, a belief that everyone matters, a natural tolerance for humanity.
As I grew, and tried to become a real writer, I developed relationships with more and more of these places. One of my first Web sites was “The Bibiliography of American Poetry told through the Pulitzer Prize. It is a list of every book of poetry that ever won the Pulitzer Prize. Here’s how I described it:
It is, by definition, an American list.
I liked making this list because it focuses on books. Instead of focusing on “superstar” poems, ripping them from their published contexts, I compiled this list by personally obtaining and seeing each of the books– most of them through the library. I was able to see the binding, the dedications, the order of poems, the signatures of the poets– all the things that make a book stand on its own two feet.
I dedicated my second book to the public library. The library was an essential place for my me and my children when they were teeny-tiny. I got to give them that same magic we’ve all felt. That “holy shit, I can have any of these?! For FREE!!??” realization that blows one’s mind. Unimaginable joy.
In my career now, I’m lucky enough to work directly with the Chicago Public Library, and the Chicago Public Library Foundation, on matters like Internet access for all. The public library is still the most essential doorway to knowledge for residents. They provide thousands of free computers and countless hours of instruction through their innovative Cyber Navigator program. They’re amazing.
Tonight I am being included as a local author in the Chicago Public Library Foundation Carl Sandburg Awards Dinner. It is their essential annual fundraiser to support their critical work. If you are going to be there, say hi. If you are not, please consider becoming a donor. The need for their work never ceases, and they do it daily.