The Whitby Public Library has become the first library in Durham to provide a free library card to any Indigenous person residing on a First Nation Reserve in Ontario.
The board made a unanimous decision to establish this new membership option, which eliminates the out-of-region fee associated with obtaining a library card.
“The library acknowledges that this land is home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples,” said Liam Nichols, Chair of the Whitby Public Library Board. “Our hope is by removing access barriers for Indigenous people throughout Ontario, we are contributing to reconciliation and fostering an understanding between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.”
“One of our core values is intellectual freedom,” said Rhonda Jessup, CEO of the Whitby Public Library. “Ensuring access to materials that reflect Indigenous histories and cultures represents intellectual freedom while fostering truth-telling and historical understanding.”
Photo courtesy of Whitby Public Library
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