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September 2, 2008
In the Minority
I found an interesting statistic today. 9% of Americans do not finish the 9th grade. And, an additional 9% of Americans do finish graduate school. I fall into one of the 9% categories and the person I helped last week was in the other. Sometimes the job of a librarian is very straightforward. Someone asks a question and we answer it. Often it's not that simple. Where does the job of a librarian end and the obligation as a human being begin?
Last week someone walked through the doors of our library and had the courage to tell the first person he came in contact with that he wanted to apply for a job at a large supermarket chain, but was expected to fill out the application on a computer (which he didn't know how to use) and. there was an additional complication -- he didn't know how to read. Imagine the courage it must have taken him to ask for help.
Now, this isn't something that we would normally do, but neither was this an average situation. We've had a couple of other adults who are not computer savvy who have had trouble filling out online applications for jobs that won't require the use of a computer, but that's a rant for another time. This man wanted a job and needed help. So, I put aside my work and some time and began what amounted to a 45 minute session of reading the application and answering 34 pages of questions. It was surprising to me to learn that he grew up in this area and English was his first language. I'm not sure what grade was completed or if this man ever went to school, but he could not read a word. He was in that 9%.
Was it my obligation as a librarian to help him? No. I could have recommended a literacy volunteer and made him feel embarrassed. I could have told him to take a computer class, which he would have had to sign up for and would have taken more time than he had. I could have told him that there was nothing we could do for him at all. But, I didn't -- I helped a fellow human being and he was very grateful.
Posted by Michele at September 2, 2008 1:05 PM
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Comments
Thank you for this beautiful story, and for your gesture of goodness. May this gracious man be readily embraced by the employer.
Posted by: beth kephart at November 4, 2008 4:03 PM