Henry Street Settlement opens doors of opportunity for Lower East Side residents and other New Yorkers through social service, arts, and health care programs.
Henry Street Resistance Library
What is the Henry Street Resistance Library?
The Henry Street Resistance Library is a free lending library dedicated to increasing knowledge and expanding access to books that promote diversity, equity, justice, belonging, and inclusion. In the wake of book bans in schools and libraries across the country, this library was created in order to challenge the idea that diverse voices and perspectives should be censored. Through this free library, we hope to provide an accessible way for anyone to learn and grow through the power of storytelling, while resisting the harms of censorship.
Who can use the library?
All are welcome to use the library, including Henry Street staff members, clients, program participants, and all our Lower East Side neighbors. We offer books for all ages and in all genres, and are working to grow our collection of Spanish- and Chinese-language books.
How do I check books out from the library?
Simply visit one of the library sites below and select the book(s) of your choice! While we do not enforce check out times, we recommend borrowing each book for three weeks to ensure that anyone who is interested can borrow the book in a timely manner.
This library operates on an honor system, and we ask that you please respect the books by not drawing, highlighting, or writing in them, and return them once you are done so the knowledge can continue to be spread to others.
Where can I find the libraries?
We currently have a library at the following location:
Henry Street Youth Services – Lobby
301 Henry Street
Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday
Wheelchair accessible
More sites coming soon!
Can I donate books to the library?
Yes! We accept donations of new and gently used books that fit within the mission of our library. Please contact dei@henrystreet.org if you’re interested in making a donation so we can distribute books appropriately.
What is the history of banned book libraries at Henry Street?
In 1933, after Nazis in Germany publicly burned books deemed “indecent” and “non-German,” the Brooklyn Jewish Center put out a call “to preserve, in readily accessible collections, all books which the Nazis outlawed in Germany . . . monuments both to the men and women who created them and to the barbarity of those who, with medieval fanaticism, burned them.” The American Library of Nazi-Banned Books opened in 1934, and Henry Street Settlement’s founder, Lillian Wald, served on the board to open, fundraise, and publicize this library. Although it is challenging that this kind of censorship is still ongoing 90 years later, we are proud to continue Lillian’s legacy through this project.
Sources: https://cranstononline.com/stories/keep-our-libraries-places-where-we-can-make-choices,209315
https://www.bklynlibrary.org/blog/2022/07/01/unbanning-books-1934
Have a book suggestion?
If you have a book you would like to see added, send us your suggestion at dei@henrystreet.org.
Not able to make it to one of our sites?
New York City library systems have tons of ebook and audiobooks that you can check out for free with a library card! Click here to learn about how to check out ebooks and audiobooks at New York Public Library, Brooklyn Public Library, and Queens Public Library.
THANK YOU!
Henry Street’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Pillar Committee would like to thank the Department of Integration and Community Engagement, the Community Response Team, and Bluestockings Cooperative for their partnership and support of this project.
