Guide to Building Support for Your Tribal Library

Guide to Building Support for your Tribal Library

A toolkit for getting the support you need from people who are in a position to help you and the library.

Who are Library Advocates?

These are the people who believe in the importance of tribal libraries and librarians. They understand vital role tribal libraries play in providing educational, in¬formational, cultural, and recreational services and activities for tribal communities. If the following people aren’t already advocates, you need consider ways to get them on the side of the library. These people include:

Tribal and community leaders
Members of the tribal government, school principals, business owners, tribal college leaders, and members of the local media (including journalists and radio and television personalities) should be in your circle of advocates. Support from such leaders helps to ensure your message will be heard far and wide.

Library users
School children, students, teachers, parents, elders, and researchers are key to any advocacy effort. Decision-makers need to hear about the positive experiences the people have had in the library.

Librarians and library staff
Advocacy is the responsibility of every library employee and should be put into effect both inside and outside the library so that everyone understands the value of the tribal library.

Potential advocates
Many people would be glad to speak out for the tribal library if asked. These are the people who have had good experiences in using libraries in the past, have family members who benefit from the library, or who just believe that tribal libraries are important.

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