Each book contains a story and each human being does too. The origin of Street Books began in 2011 with an artistic gesture, a summer lending library for people living outside. Now fourteen years later, Street Books is a nonprofit predicated on the philosophy that all people deserve a place to belong, to be known, to have access to safety and security and the resources to thrive. It’s why for so many years we have posted up on street corners with bikes full of good books, reading glasses and friendly librarians who know the name and book preferences of each patron. Each human is a walking secret history, a book of adventures and misadventures, sorrows and triumphs and humor. It doesn’t take long to look around and wonder about the larger forces at work that have resulted in some people climbing into a tent on the sidewalk for the night while others take the elevator to their loft. Street Books has been able to interrogate the systems that don’t serve, and ask why our patrons are missing from conversations on the policies in our city that most impact them. But there is always more work to be done.

Equity Statement

Street Books is committed to the pursuit of equity—both internally and in the world at large—by fighting for systemic change together with those most affected by the violence of poverty. This is a commitment that we will model in our own lives and within our organization. We will use an anti-oppressions framework to guide our operations as we work to build mutual, authentic relationships by showing up consistently to share books, resources, and friendships that reflect the communities’ own needs, identities, and desires. We will work in solidarity with our patrons with love, support community organizing, and show up for human rights. This is really important to us. We will consistently and continually commit resources, time, and effort to it. 

Read our complete Equity statement.

At Street Books we believe in:

Community

  • We work to form genuine, authentic connections through mutuality

  • We recognize the value of every human and work to support that value

  • We center our patrons with respect, bringing kindness and empathy

  • We listen to what is needed/wanted and we meet each other where we are

Books:

  • We love books!

  • We believe in the transformative capacity of books, both for the individual and the collective

  • We believe reading and discussing the stories of others creates empathy

  • We believe books offer access to ideas, education, liberation, and stimulating conversations

Bikes:

  • We love bikes and bicycle libraries!

  • Biking helps us show up in public places that our patrons can access more easily

  • Biking causes less harm to the environment and to people living outside

  • Biking keeps us creative, responsive, flexible, and mobile

Action:

  • We work toward a vision of the world we want to live in

  • We call on our experience/insight to press for longterm, sustainable system change

  • We believe housing is a human right, and we support community organizing for change

  • We devote ourselves to abolishing systems that cause harm to people and the planet and creating an equitable world

We work hard to prioritize joy, radical LOVE, kind humor and trust for one another. 

We also have fun!