The Chicago Public Library (CPL) has agreed to provide staff to moderate Starbucks Coffee Book Club events at five locations in the months of October, November and December.
Inside Publications received a media advisory Wednesday from Starbucks’ PR firm Price/McNabb of Charlotte, NC, which states, “A book club leader from the Chicago Public Library will moderate at each location with the first book in discussion chosen as ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’”
“It’s just another example of Dempsey’s style that we are now forced to promote literacy in a for-profit coffee store over doing that same task in the libraries themselves,” said a Harold Washington Library staff member who wished to remain anonymous, concerned about retribution from administrative staff should she be identified.
“Are we going to be paid for this or are we being forced to volunteer? Why can’t Starbucks just underwrite the events so that these readings can be held in the library? We’d recognize them. Why do we have to go shill for Starbucks coffee? It’s not our job to sell coffee and bottled Frappuccino. We’re not being given a choice, though the word is out that they only want young attractive yuppie-type women to do these events,” said our source.
Inside Publications e-mailed these and other questions regarding the Starbucks events Friday to a CPL spokesperson and have not heard back by deadline Tuesday. In fact, Inside Publications has not received any answers to our many questions on any library issues dating back to early August.
The readings will be held in five North Side Starbucks starting Oct. 9 and running through Dec. 11.
Starbucks claims these events are being held to show that one of their “core values is involvement in our local community.” But library staffers aren’t buying it.
“It’s just more proof of Dempsey’s disrespect for librarians,” said our source. “We are already experiencing massive staff shortages in our branches and she is sending us out to do PR for a private company who until now could not care less about our libraries. So why won’t they come into the library for events like these? The impression is that for Dempsey, it has to be held in stores close by our branches but still outside of the library itself... Who are they kidding?”
It has been implied by many library staff that Mrs. Phillip Corboy does not believe young urban professionals will use the public libraries and that she feels many would rather get their literature through for-profit book stores and over the Internet, rather than for free through public library circulation.
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