Don't judge a book by its cover

by Ms Eva Jönsson

Borrow a prejudice - and get rid of it! - That was the call when the project "Borrow A Living Book" was first introduced at Malmö City Library in August 2005. The idea of offering Living Books to the public comes from Denmark. In 2000, the Danish organization "Stop the Violence" introduced a human library at Roskilde Festival. Malmö City Library has offered a living library at least twice a year since the start. "Here people meet other people they would not normally meet", says Catharina Norén, an organizer of the living library. Each living book can be borrowed for 45 minutes. The living book and its reader get vouchers for coffee and sit down to talk, an easy way of establishing contact. People who borrow the living books are between 10 and 70 years old.

The titles so far have been: an imam, a veiled Muslim woman, a homosexual man and a homosexual woman, an animal rights activist, a Danish woman, a transvestite, a journalist, a blind man, a traveller, a Rom woman, a gypsy, a librarian, a businessman, an Arab, a clergyman, an ex-convict, a feminist and a homeless man. These persons represent groups that many people have a lot of prejudices or preconceptions about. "Many people judge others without actually knowing much", says Catharina Norén. Here they get a chance to meet and talk".

Here are comments from the borrowers: "It's a great idea with more social interaction and integration like this", "You learn a little bit more and you gain more knowledge and details than you would normally do reading a book", "This was an eye-opener!", "I had greater prejudices than I thought", "It took away my fear..." and "Living books give a new dimension, this ought to be a permanent project in libraries!".

During the Holocaust Remembrance Day, the library lent out survivors from the concentration camps, with emphasis on living books rather than on prejudices.

All "books" have been thrilled about the project and would happily take part in the project again.

Both national and international media has shown great interest in Living Books. Articles have been published in several large European newspapers. Interviews have been made by the BBC, as well as by the Radio Live New Zealand and a TV-team from San Francisco.

The Living Library concept has spread to other countries: Norway, Hungary, Finland, Iceland, Austria, the Netherlands, the United States and Canada. Maybe this activity will encourage people around the world to look upon their neighbours with less prejudice and encourage people to be true to themselves. As the transvestite told the young boy: - Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken!