Glenn Kelly, Brighton and Hove Socialist Party
As part of the Socialist Party campaign to force the council to reverse library cuts, we organised a protest outside the main library on Sunday 12 April – the day new reduced opening hours were to begin.
School and university students spoke about how the library study and work space were critical for them and their studies.
They can’t afford to use local coffee shops’ Wi-Fi at £3.50 a coffee, and they don’t have the space to study in their overcramped digs, and are unable to afford Wi-Fi.
The cut in opening hours will bite hard. Previously, the library service director had told us herself that “she could fill the work stations in the library three times over. Students are queuing up even before the library was open to try and get one of the 40 workstations”.
One former homeless man told us: “The library had been a lifeline for me. Particularly in the winter months, a chance to be in a safe and warm space, where I could read what I couldn’t afford to buy”.
Alongside Socialist Party members, who spoke at and led the protest, we were joined by the trades union council secretary, as well as Your Party and Green Party members.
We, of course, welcomed all support. But we also laid down the challenge that anyone seeking our votes in the Brighton council elections next year should commit to reversing all the library cuts, and reopening the two libraries already closed.
We are now planning to bring together the supporters of the campaign to discuss the next steps to force the Labour council into a U-turn.
