In New York City, Washington, and across the nation, neighborhood public libraries are helping a population traumatized, saddened, and angered by the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon to cope and return to the comforting routines of daily life.
High on the list of requested books at New York Public Library branches—most of which opened the day after the attack—are the Koran and histories of Islam and the Middle East. Equally sought after are the writings of 16th-century French astrologer Nostradamus, who has been falsely credited with predicting the disaster. NYPL’s Web site has posted an anthology of poems about the tragedy, written by teenagers. Both the Brooklyn and Queens Borough public libraries have posted disaster and coping information on their Web sites.
All 27 District of Columbia public library locations opened the day after the suicide crash. In Montgomery County, Maryland, and elsewhere around the country, librarians prepared reading lists and Webliographies that parents can use to help their children understand the events of September 11. The Prince George’s County (Md.) Memorial Library System is preparing a November public forum on issues surrounding the attack.
No list of library losses and casualties at the World Trade Center is available yet, but the Special Libraries Association has posted a list of members in the disaster area who have reported that they are safe.
The first reported librarian casualty in the World Trade Center is Margaret Quinn Orloske, 50, of Windsor, Connecticut. She was a vice-president for Marsh and McLennan Companies and worked on the 96th floor of Tower One. She received her MLS from the University of Pittsburgh.
Posted October 1, 2001.