CARIBOU, Maine — The Caribou Public Library recently began displaying an exhibit detailing the 1969 Stonewall uprising — a watershed moment for LGBTQ+ movements in America — and Library Director Hope Shafer said that while the public reception has been mixed, most feedback has been positive so far.
The exhibit coincides with LGBTQ+ history month, during which National Coming Out Day occurred on Oct. 11.
Shafer said on Oct. 23, the first day of the exhibit, that she has had exactly twice as many positive comments as negative.
“A few people came in and shared their concerns,” she said, “and I thanked each one of them. Because it’s really hard to come in and share your concerns and fears with someone you don’t know. I thanked them for their courage, and told them that public libraries are for everyone, and that we tried to be as tasteful as we possibly could.”
Many of the public concerns, according to Shafer, were that “elementary students were going to come into the library and see posters of homosexuals,” or that “this would be a gateway to other things coming into the library.”
“I’m not quite sure what ‘other things’ this would be a gateway to,” Shafer said, “and all I can say is that I try to tailor what we do here for everyone in the community.”
The library director added that most concerns were alleviated when she explained that the panels were “tasteful” and “word heavy” and that the exhibit itself is being displayed in the Caribou Room on the first floor of the building and not in the main entrance area.
“Our patrons are also our friends,” she said, “and this is a voice for them. It’s done in a way that would make them proud.”
As for positive feedback, Shafer said one patron left the exhibit wiping tears from her eyes.
“She said it was really well done, and this isn’t part of her personal history either,” Shafer said, “but she was alive during this time. She said the exhibit helped her really understand what happened.”
Shafer said another patron, who recently moved back to the area, stopped by to pick up a library card, and thanked her for bringing the Stonewall exhibit to Aroostook County.
The exhibit, which consists of 17 30-by-40-inch panels, originally came from the Stonewall National Museum & Archives in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Portland Public Library purchased the panels earlier this year with grant funding from the Maine Community Foundation Equity Fund with the intention to not only host an exhibit at their library, but to share it with libraries throughout the state.
The exhibit’s next stop is Blue Hill.
The exhibit made its way to The County with the help of former Caribou Public Library Director Anastasia Weigle, who now works for the University of Maine at Augusta as an assistant professor of Information and Library Sciences, and her husband Steve Weigle, who works at the Portland Public Library.
Shafer said Anastasia Weigle drove the exhibit from Portland to Caribou, and that she also agreed to bring the exhibit back to the southern part of the state.
As for the exhibit itself, Shafer said she is pleased with the quality and reception it has garnered so far.
“It’s colorful. It’s bright, and it’s beautiful,” she said, “and the panels really do tell the story, from what the Stonewall uprising was, and all the way up to present day in 2019. It’s a part of all of our histories, whether or not you identify as LGBTQ+. And if we don’t remember that these things happened, perhaps it will to a different person or a different group later on. So it’s important for us to look back at Stonewall, regardless of whether or not it’s a part of our personal history.”
The display will continue 2-6 p.m. Oct. 25 and also 11 a.m.-1 p.m. ,
