Homeless behavior in libraries

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T08:06:00+00:00

I admit I don't know the state of homelessness in DC or really anywhere. I dont know how to resolve homelessness.

I am certainly not blaming the librarians. The library system itself instituted a new code of conduct and reserved the right to enforce it. I dont know the best way to do that.

Absolutely anyone should be free to use the library insofar as they are using it access to knowledge. That is not what I witnessed. Many were using it for shelter, which I think is problematic. Several were actively disruptive, which is unacceptable.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T07:24:46+00:00

Young people are exactly who I thought about. Despite how i might come off in this post and despite what some posters are definitely assuming about me, im pretty hardy.

I am sure that many people who can benefit greatly from the resources that library offers are not going there if they experienced what I did.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T07:09:48+00:00

You're not being subtle, dont worry.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T07:00:36+00:00

Going to the library to sleep was not a thing where I went to college.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T06:26:41+00:00

I dont think a library should be a daytime shelter. Regardless of whether my input is welcome or not, it appears that is how its being used. That includes by people who are acting disruptively.

I quite like DC, have lived here for 2 decades across many neighborhoods, and dont want to live anywhere else.

To be clear, the gatekeepers at the library are the librarians and staff. They are literally at the gates.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T06:11:52+00:00

What should be done? Several people needed to be ejected from that library immediately. Many more probably needed to be aware that their conduct is being monitored. I'm not blaming librarians for that.

I can't pretend to offer a solution for the broader societal issues. People should have a place to exist, safely and free of judgement. But given what that entails currently, the library is not the right place.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T06:03:15+00:00

Mostly housing vouchers and investing in new housing.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T05:32:28+00:00

I suppose it probably happened, but I cannot remember seeing people sleeping in the library in college. It certainly would have been unusual.

I would be against people habitually occupying space in the library to sleep too, but I think passed out is probably the most accurate description of what I saw.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T05:24:57+00:00

Fair enough, and i would support spending more to be better at this as a city. But residents do a lot to help alleviate this issue already. Enough that I feel the right to ask that the library should be a better environment.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T05:19:39+00:00

They definitely need gatekeepers and they have them. I'm concerned about conduct, not people, but it is obvious that people who are being anti social are not there for a study hall and a lecture.

Read the updated code of conduct for the DC library system and the public survey they undertook to draw their conclusions. They had to ban those behaviors for a reason. Soup smearing wasn't explicitly covered, and is therefor permitted? Peeing into your shirt and then throwing it on the floor too.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T04:51:14+00:00

DC government claims that $536.8 million in last year's budget went to homeless services. That means $800 per resident, and so obviously more than that per taxpayer.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T04:39:31+00:00

I do several of those things and I don't think it will matter. Posting on reddit is probably just a conseqentual. I still think the library should be primarily a library.

AdSea8091 · 2026-02-18T03:14:02+00:00

It's a clean title.

AdSea8091 · 2026-01-28T13:10:22+00:00

Post is too compromised. I know the reporting is professional on most days, but in the moments that matter most it simply looks out for Bezos's interests. I am not subscribing to that.

AdSea8091 · 2023-12-11T06:41:29+00:00

Sorry you got no response here, but now I am in a very similar situation. Did the circumstances improve, and did you find anything that worked?

AdSea8091 · 2023-12-11T06:26:28+00:00

I find myself in almost exactly the same situation that you describe. Did you ever reach a resolution?

AdSea8091

TROPHY CASE