The library is an important part of community care and it’s important that we protect everyone’s right to be at the library.
As an ICU nurse, I’ve seen how inadequate housing affects the health care system. As it gets colder, we know that the lack of housing for homeless people will contribute to even more deaths and disabilities, like limb amputations from frostbite.
One place that people have always been able to turn to for warmth during the day has been the library. If the library becomes a place that is no longer safe for people without homes, this will have a detrimental effect on the health of the homeless population of Anchorage, thus overburdening the entire health care system.
What happens at the library impacts everyone’s ability to be safe and receive care. The library must be a place where everyone can rest without fear.
— Mary Ann Thomas
Anchorage
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