Lending out a person instead of a book? Abington looks to ‘human library’ to foster conversations

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The Denmark-based Human Library — that’s “Menneskebiblioteket” in Danish — has traveled around the world since 2000, fostering conversations between people who might not normally interact.

Now, 80 countries later, the international movement will bring its message to the Abington Free Library. On Sunday, Jan. 12, at 1:30 p.m., participants will be encouraged to check out a person instead of a book. No registration is required.

“We like to think of ourselves as the public’s living room, where people can come together and have conversations like this,” said Elizabeth Fitzgerald, executive director of the Abington Township Public Library.

The library has gathered more than a dozen people with a wide range of life experiences to serve as “human books.” According to Fitzgerald, these volunteers include a Vietnam War veteran, people with physical and mental disabilities, a child of incarcerated parents, parents of queer youth, people of different religious backgrounds, trans and queer people, immigrants and others.

Ciaran Dubeck, a 22-year-old student working towards a doctorate in physical therapy, said people go through their lives judging others — consciously or unconsciously — based on previous experiences. He’s looking forward to being a human book.

“For me this is an opportunity to un-judge my readers also just as much as it is an opportunity for them to un-judge me,” Dubeck said. “For example, like when I meet new people, sometimes I worry about how their perception of me might be changed because I’m a transgender man, but being a book in the Human Library gives me a chance to sort of heal through that. So people can see me as myself.”

Fitzgerald said the event would not have been possible without the “generosity of time and self” of participants like Dubeck.

“They’ll be coming here and then the readers can check out one of our human books and learn about their life experience and just have a conversation for 30 minutes,” she said.

The very first Human Library event in Copenhagen functioned more within the boundaries of what is generally considered normal library operations: a four-day reading event with 50 titles curated to give participants a chance to challenge stereotypes. The idea has since evolved.

Fitzgerald came across the organization online a couple of years ago after her mother sent her a Facebook post. She partnered with the Abington Township Human Relations Commission to bring the concept across the pond.

The Human Library provided the Abington Free Library with training videos on how to replicate a safe and productive experience. Dubeck, a Northeast Philadelphia native, said a family friend reached out to him and asked him to participate.

“Especially with the climate of the world right now, I think it’s important that we get to know each other better, so that we can love each other more and support each other more by starting out as a small community like this,” Dubeck said.

Lillian Gaffney, 73, first heard about the Human Library event from a member of her quilt group. Originally, she was asked to share her experiences as a “book” about addiction. Gaffney had a better idea.

“I wanted to do recovery,” Gaffney said. “I want to do ‘healing from,’ and so leading with the title of addiction is fine. But then I thought, I’d like my chapter to be around, ‘So what did you do to heal and what kind of avenues and resources would you recommend for people?’”

The Glenside resident said it is a privilege to be a part of this activity.

“I hope I help people remove that stigma,” Gaffney said. “I hope I help people to become unjudgmental about what they perceive a life of addiction may look like or what a person may look like in their minds. Addiction can run across the board as far as education, financial means in life. It doesn’t matter. It can happen to anybody and so I’m hoping that I will be a part of helping people change their perception.”

While the opportunity to lend out human books for a day is certainly novel for the library, Fitzgerald said it is an extension of the work the organization has already done to foster community.

“We have a community puzzle that is out on the floor, and it is always in progress,” she said. “People come in, they stop, they sit and they work on the puzzle for a little bit with someone else who they might not know and people are having conversations — and they’re having fun together. So, this Human Library event is a bigger opportunity for us to facilitate that kind of connection.”