Student librarian Alex Halpern is just an ordinary guy who really loves books, and libraries.
Enraged by this suggestion, Halpern hit back with an impassioned pro-library argument that eventually went viral.
If you, like this jackalope, think libraries are just warehouses for books, you are sorely and embarrassingly mistaken. Sorely.
— alex halpern (@HalpernAlex) October 23, 2017
In addition to meeting a community's need for educational and recreational materials, PARTICULARLY FOR YOUNG FAMILIES...
— alex halpern (@HalpernAlex) October 23, 2017
public libraries are evolving to meet the demands of the 21st Century, unlike the neanderthal who sparked this thread.
— alex halpern (@HalpernAlex) October 23, 2017
I am mad online
— alex halpern (@HalpernAlex) October 23, 2017
This is a fact, and one of the reasons I became a librarian. Libraries are one of the last govt spaces trusted by marginalized people. https://t.co/xVzGR96qbA
— alex halpern (@HalpernAlex) October 24, 2017
Halpern was surprised at the mostly positive attention he received in response to his tweets, and his more than 15,000 new Twitter followers.
Ultimately, Walker conceded and admitted libraries were more popular than he thought, even retweeting Halpern’s plea for donations to a library scholarship fund.
Halpern says he feels validated by the outpouring of support for libraries.
I am heartened by the number of people who love their library. I am now less mad online.
— alex halpern (@HalpernAlex) October 23, 2017
“Some of the best people on Earth that I know are librarians, and they’re doing amazing work, building communities and helping people in need. I think they should be recognized more for that.”