Be An Advocate
The Impact of Advocacy
The San Jose Public Library Foundation calls on its supporters to help restore library hours. For the first time in Library history, sixteen branch libraries opened on Sundays. This unprecedented expansion would not have been possible without the advocacy work from SJPLF and our passionate supporters.
Contact Your Council Member
We encourage you to contact the Mayor and your City Councilmember to let them know why the San José Public Library is essential to ensuring equity of access to information and education. See below for their contact information and some suggestions of what to say.
Not sure what City Council District you live in? Visit the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters to look it up OR check this handy map.
Thank you for speaking out on behalf of our public libraries!
Mayor – Matt Mahan | (408) 535-4800 | Mayor@sanjoseca.gov
District 1 – Rosemary Kamei | (408) 535-4901 |District1@sanjoseca.gov
District 2 – Sergio Jimenez | (408) 535-4902 | District2@sanjoseca.gov
District 3 – Omar Torres | (408) 535-4903 | District3@sanjoseca.gov
District 4 – David Cohen | (408) 535-4904 | District4@sanjose.gov
District 5 – Peter Ortiz | (408) 535-4905 | District5@sanjoseca.gov
District 6 – Dev Davis | (408) 535-4906 | District6@sanjoseca.gov
District 7 – Bien Doan | (408) 535-4907 | District7@sanjoseca.gov
District 8 – Domingo Candelas | (408) 535-4908 | District8@sanjoseca.gov
District 9 – Pam Foley | (408) 535-4909 | District9@sanjoseca.gov
District 10 – Arjun Batra | (408) 535-4910 | District10@sanjoseca.gov
Don’t know what to say?
Use these talking points to guide your comments. Please make it personal and tell your own story about why the Library is essential to you…
- If local government budgets truly reflect the values of the communities they serve, I believe the City of San José’s budget should prioritize our public libraries.
- As we continue to recover from the pandemic, it is critical that the San José Public Library has the resources it needs to serve our most vulnerable neighbors and build a more equitable, educated, and engaged community.
- Significant cuts to Library services in the previous years should now be fully restored to pre-pandemic levels and library hours expanded to include Sunday hours at all library branches.
- When library funding increases, our community is safer and stronger. An increase in library funding correlates with an increase in library usage. Greater library usage increases the overall literacy skills of our community, which creates more economic opportunity for its members and boosts our local economy.
- Library fines and the fear of accruing them pose a significant barrier to the most vulnerable adults in our community and prevent them from using the Library. Fines-Free For All will support the recovery of highest-need communities and make the Library a welcoming and safe space for everyone.
- Any continued cuts to Library hours, services, and staff will only exacerbate the growing digital divide in San José, which existed before COVID-19 and will continue to persist after it — unless we invest in solutions now.
- The Library has taken the lead in implementing the City’s Education and Digital Literacy Strategy, which has become even more critical since COVID-19. Continued funding for those positions and hotspot connectivity is needed to sustain and build on this work.
- I appreciate the Mayor and City Council’s continued support and investment in the City’s Digital Inclusion efforts, including community Wi-Fi, hotspot lending programs, expanded broadband connectivity, and digital literacy education, and ongoing support for fines free for youth and seniors.
- I call on city leaders to fully fund our Library in order to ensure equity of opportunity for all of our residents.
