Introducing the Tiebrary

Hey, pirates, did you know you will shortly be able to borrow a tie from the library?

You heard that right! From friend of the Shipwreck Lauren, of Urban Librarians Unite & Outreach Librarian at QPL, we’ve heard that our pals at Queens Public Library are in the midst of accessioning a bunch of ties at their Job Information Center at the Central Library in Jamaica.

We all know that one of the things many people go to public libraries for help finding jobs, be it to search for openings, type & email applications, or just fill their unemployed time with the library’s free resources. And, as we also know, getting a job requires certain resources, and without those resources that process is so much more difficult. For example, in California a couple weeks ago, Shanesha Taylor, a Black homeless women with two young children, was arrested for child abuse after leaving her kids in the car while at a job interview, because she had no access to childcare.

So, since librarians are all about access to resources, in addition to the Job Information Center’s “books on resume and cover letter writing, choosing a career, changing careers and other career-related subjects…resume and/or cover letter reviews by appointment, and resume writing and other classes for job seekers… [and] information about other local job hunting resources,” QPL will be lending ties! Respectability be damned, but we still gotta pay the rent. With those ties, masculine-of-center library patrons will be able to go to their job interviews with a little more confidence & a better chance of getting hired. Along with the ties are tying instructions and interview tips.

My alma mater had a similar resource in its career center — they lent out entire suits to students interviewing for jobs, internships, etc. These two programs are excellent examples of librarians & other resource providers responding to the needs of the communities they serve and thinking outside the box. Bravo, and more of this, please!