Rethinking Sterotypes at the Library

Below are some of the stereotypes I frequently come into contact with at the library.

Chauvinistic old men
Superior business men/women
Snarky teenagers
Defensive mothers
People with no social skills


While I love to help people at my job, none of the above are very much fun to deal with. So generally when you see one of these stereotypes coming, you pray the encounter will be brief.

That is exactly what I was doing when two greasy looking skater boys walked up to my desk for help finding a book. Who knew it would be one of the best encounters I have ever had with teen boys. First of all, these boys were amazingly polite. They kept apologizing for interrupting my work. Next, they said thank you over and over again for my help. They made eye contact with me, and finally one boy even told me how much he liked using the library. Now, based on some of the things they said, I very much doubt that these boys come from good homes or have much interest in school, and yet there they were trying to use the library.

This experience gives me hope that teens in less fortunate circumstances can 1) still be brought up to be nice, and 2) know they are welcome at the library and that all they need to do is ask and we would be so happy to help them. It also reminded me that even if it's 1 in 100, there are great people out there who you just might dismiss because of a stereotype.