March 19, 2003

City Council
Washington, DC

Dear Council Members,

Even in the best times, the challenges you face in overseeing the nation’s capital are no doubt enormous, and today’s economic climate surely makes your work even more demanding. The resources are simply not available to meet the many needs of your great city, which I was proud to call my home some years ago. It is with considerable humility, then, that I ask you to allocate additional resources to the D.C. public libraries. I dare to make this request because I know what a difference access to library resources can make to the children and adults who stand to benefit most from the public support of these vital centers for learning.

Such access made all the difference in my life. Like many of the children in your city, my youngest days were marked by poverty, segregation, and the chaos that can be pervasive in communities overwhelmed by deprivation and marginalization. Yet libraries offered me a world of order, where imagination and learning could flourish. It was through books that I began to recognize the possibility of a life that was very different from what I understood to be prescribed for me. It was through books that the transformative experience of education came to guide my life’s journey.

My success as a student was fueled by my love of reading. Had I now been given the opportunity to explore through books new ideas, perspectives, and far-away places, my life would have remained circumscribed. I would never have recognized my thirst for travel, which led to study in Mexico and later to a Fulbright Fellowship in France. My curiosity for understanding languages and cultures different from my own would have remained dormant. I certainly would not have received a Ph.D. in Romance languages, become president of an Ivy League university, or dedicated my life to improving access to education.

The commitments we make to our libraries say much about how we, as a community, value opportunity and knowledge. In the capital of this rich nation, libraries should reflect our intention to provide all Americans with access to exceptional educational resources. I trust that you can find a way, even in these difficult times, to support the institutions that enlighten our citizens and provide all people, regardless of their financial circumstances, with first- rate public educational resources. It is not hyperbole to say that the future of our cities depends on this support.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Ruth J. Simmons