The campaign to name the Bayview Branch Library for Linda Brooks-Burton, a local hero who died suddenly in September, has reached new milestones. Both as a managing librarian and Bayview community member, Linda had devoted her life to the benefit of education, youth and families, and to the preservation of African American history.
Over 650 people have signed on to the campaign, on paper petitions at the branch library, and through a petition the campaign organizers have circulated online. Well over half of the signers of the online petition live in zip codes outside the 94124 and 94134 areas, which may indicate that Linda touched the lives of more people than locals may have known.
A committee of organizers met at the Bayview Branch Library on October 21st to discuss the campaign. Lydia Vincent organized and facilitated the meeting which included petition originators Norita Collins and Fran Carter. Other participants were Dorris Vincent, Espanola Jackson, Geoffrea Morris, Mary McClure, Rene Gonzalvez, Jeffrey Betcher, and library representative Christina Mitra.
San Francisco Public Library system leadership has expressed support of the campaign which seeks to honor one of their own. Norita Collins organized an October 31st meeting with SF City Librarian Luis Herrera and Chief of Branches Edward Melton that was also attended by community members Fran Carter and Jeffrey Betcher.
The campaign to honor Linda will be underway for at least one year, given the SF Public Library Commission’s policies for such things. Future campaign events will include involvement opportunities supporters, including attending a library commission meeting to formally register the library naming, participating in community feedback gatherings in the neighborhood, generating letters of support from key City and community leaders, and growing the number of petition signers.
Managing librarians of branch libraries across the City are being approached about hosting a petition in their branches as a way to grow support for the renaming of the Bayview Branch Library.
The next meeting of the campaign committee has been scheduled for December 18th at noon in the community room of the Bayview Branch Library. Find more information online.
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