By Paula Sakey, Executive Director of the Boston Public Library Fund
Lately, I’ve found myself noticing something happening at the Boston Public Library.
Every time I walk through our buildings — whether it’s the historic McKim Building in Copley Square or one of our neighborhood branches — I see more and more young people. They’re studying for exams. Meeting friends. Working remotely. Attending author talks. Exploring our collections. Using our technology. Sometimes they’re simply looking for a quiet place to think.
It made me curious. For years, we’ve heard that younger generations were leaving libraries behind. That everything they needed could be found online. Instead, I’m seeing the opposite. When I started looking into it, I realized this isn’t unique to Boston. National research shows that Generation Z is embracing public libraries in surprising numbers. According to the American Library Association, more than half of Gen Z and Millennials visited a physical library in 2022. (link to ALA report). Even more interesting, many of those visitors don’t consider themselves avid readers.
So why are they coming? I think young people are recognizing something many of us have forgotten — public libraries have quietly become one of the few places left where everyone is welcome. So many spaces today come with expectations. Buy a coffee. Purchase a ticket. Pay a membership fee. Even the apps and websites we use every day compete for our attention and monetize our clicks. Libraries ask for none of that. You can walk through our doors and spend an hour or an entire day. No purchase required.
I also think we’re seeing something else. Gallup has found that Americans visit public libraries more often than movie theaters, museums, casinos, amusement parks, and national parks. Far from becoming less relevant, libraries are exactly what Gen Z needs more of — community. Former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has called loneliness one of the greatest public health challenges facing our country. (link to Surgeon General report). We live in a world where we’re constantly connected, yet many people have never felt more isolated. Libraries can’t solve loneliness, but they do offer a place where people can simply be together.
One of the things that excites me most is seeing this happen through the Boston Public Library Fund’s Emerging Leaders initiative. What began as a way to engage young professionals has become a vibrant community of people who care deeply about Boston, lifelong learning, culture, and creating social connections. They aren’t just attending events. They’re building friendships, volunteering, giving back, and investing in the future of our city.
That tells me something important. For many young adults, the Library isn’t simply a place to visit, it’s a place to belong. People often tell me, “I haven’t been to the Library in years.” Then they come back and almost without fail, the next sentence is, “I had no idea all of this was happening here.”
They’re surprised to learn about our free English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes that help adults build new lives and careers. They discover entrepreneurs receiving mentorship through our Entrepreneur-in-Residence program. They see children falling in love with reading, researchers exploring extraordinary collections, and people of every age learning new skills. Last year alone, more than 3.2 million people visited the Boston Public Library, and more than 130,000 new library cards were issued. Those aren’t just impressive numbers, they’re a reminder that public libraries continue to evolve alongside the communities they serve.
I’ve come to believe that we spent too many years asking whether libraries would survive the digital age. That was never really the question. The better question is whether our communities will continue to have places where everyone — regardless of age, income, or background — can learn, explore, connect, and belong. That’s what public libraries have always done. Generation Z seems to understand that instinctively. My hope is that the rest of us do, too.