For a month and a half, the center located on Calle del Doctor Cerrada has not opened its doors several afternoons a week due to lack of staff.
Tradition, companies and shining lights: the culture of Zaragoza according to Natalia Chueca
For more than a month, Zaragoza’s main library, located on Calle del Doctor Cerrada, has not opened its doors several afternoons a week due to lack of staff. The center belongs to the Ministry of Culture, but management falls to the Government of Aragon. Dozens of people have sat in front of the closed doors of the library to read to act out “what they don’t let us do inside.”
They have done so led by the writer Irene Vallejo, who this Wednesday published a message on the social network X (formerly Twitter) calling on people to gather in front of the center. “It is not just any library, it is a reference, a symbol,” said the author of ‘Infinity in a Reed’. “Public libraries are one of the main spaces for citizens and the reduction of hours deprives many people of the place to study or read, where they can enjoy advantages that they may not have in their own home, such as heating, books , press, knowledge, access to computers. It is something that we must deeply defend,” added Vallejo.
"We celebrate culture when there are awards, but we must take care of it, and that also depends on treating libraries and all knowledge networks as they deserve."
Each one with his book and his flashlight, those attending the protest have thus demanded that this center be staffed. Cristina Verbena is one of the representatives of the protest. This narrator has explained the reason for this performance “with a touch of humor” so that it is “visible.”
The cultural block of Zaragoza defends the long opening hours of public libraries because “they are spaces of knowledge, meeting and community support.” They consider that this extensive schedule is what guarantees “that all people, regardless of their work schedules or personal responsibilities, can access the educational and cultural resources that libraries offer. Public libraries are inclusive spaces where people of all ages find a place. , origins and socioeconomic levels.
The attendees came with their books and flashlights in protest.
“A public library is the basis of democracy, very different people get together and it is a place where culture is open,” he adds. He also criticizes the “cuts” in the city of Zaragoza “for a year and a half”: “We are concerned about the situation of culture in the city.”
Rocío Gallardo, former resident of La harinera, protests along the same lines, protesting the “cutting of budgets” and considers that “closing in the afternoons represents a gap of inequality in access to culture.”
The protest, promoted by the Zaragoza cultural block, had the support of the Zaragoza writer on Wednesday. In X, Vallejo stated that “libraries are spaces of construction, opportunity and meeting. In their rooms, where those who do not have their own room, or heating, or books can study, they level out inequalities. If we do not protest now, other libraries may suffer the same measures.”
This Thursday, Vallejo recalled that libraries, “spaces for culture, neighborhoods, and presentations,” have “a lot to do with the great moment that Aragonese culture is experiencing.” “We celebrate it when there are awards, but we have to take care of it, and that also depends on treating libraries and all knowledge and education networks as they deserve,” he noted.
This situation has occurred due to the eleven technical, administrative and administrative assistant vacancies that have not been filled. During this month of December the library has stopped and will stop providing service for nine afternoons, in addition to Saturdays, December 7 and 28, dates on which it usually opens. Furthermore, it is not only fewer days of service, but there are services that are not provided due to the lack of workers, such as online lending, copy reservations and historical press consultation on microfilm.
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