Interview With John Chrastka, Executive Director Of EveryLibrary

Imagine a world with no libraries. That building where you could browse the shelves now has employees telling you to stop sitting and make a purchase. There is no place to organize your taxes or renew your driver’s license. Kids during the summer don’t have access to the free lunch program. Job candidates don’t have a reliable Internet connection or resources to polish their resume. Libraries do more than give us books. They give us control over our futures.

EveryLibrary is an organization that wants to ensure that these institutions stay open. Executive Director John Chrastka is launching a 2020 campaign to ensure that people support libraries and the services they offer.

What inspired the beginning of EveryLibrary?

We want to see librarians at work in every town, neighborhood, and school district across this country. We know from the research that students perform better in school when there is a properly staffed and stocked library that supports the curriculum as well as individual discovery. We know from experience that literacy programs, workforce development, arts and culture, business development, and access to books and reading are high-impact resources for communities. EveryLibrary was founded as a political action committee in order to work on the fundamental political…