The Public is a new movie from writer/director Emilio Estevez and it examines the plight of the homeless and the public libraries growing role as a place of refuge for communities that have no other place to go.
I can’t stop watching this trailer. It’s like someone took my life (at least parts of it) and put it up on the big screen. I can’t imagine how I’ll feel when I actually see the movie.
The Public Trailer
I’ve been there! I’ve told people to put their clothes back on, I’ve broken up fights, I’ve stopped people from having sex in the bathrooms, I’ve dealt with the overdoses......and I’ve had dozens of people tell me how nice I have it to work in a quiet place where I get to read all day long.
I’ve also been the one to lock the door on a freezing cold night and wondered how our regulars would fare in the hour between our closing and the shelter opening. Note in the trailer the staff call people by their names. I bet the library staff knew the name of the “unidentified homeless man” who froze to death. One of our guys froze to death in a cardboard box. I knew his name.
I have such high hopes for this movie. I’m sick and tired of being portrayed as a timid, Marion-The-Librarian type who does nothing but tell people to be quiet all day long. Instead, I know that myself and my coworkers are trying to help people get through life. It’s happening in libraries all over the world.