Talk to strangers from all walks of life at Krakow’s “Human Library”

"Checking out books" at a past Human Library in Krakow
“Checking out books” at a past Human Library in Krakow

Have you ever wished you could speak to a social activist in their 60s? Ask a person who uses a wheelchair what their daily life is like? Get the real scoop from someone who grew up in Afghanistan?

Today at the Human Library (Żywa Biblioteka), you can do just this. The “books” of this “library” are not paper, but people with unique lives, experiences, and voices who have volunteered their time to speak to visitors in an open and non-judgmental setting.

Other “books’ include a Palestinian Muslim, a transgender man, a blind person, a Seventh-Day Adventist pastor, and more. (You can find the full “catalog” in Polish here.)

The concept of a living library was started in Copenhagen in 2000 in the hopes of reducing prejudice and violence by bringing diverse people closer together. The first one in Poland appeared 10 years ago in Warsaw, and it has been a tradition in Krakow for six years now.

The event will take place today from 12-18 at the public library at ul. Rajska 1.

 

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