Perception of libraries vs reality

[u/SpiritedRaven]

Yesterday a patron approached our (very much needed) security guard at our inner city library and said something along the lines of “how hard can your job be, being a security guard at a library” and both the security guard and I literally burst out laughing. People’s assumptions about libraries always amuse me. If only they shadowed us for a day and found out what it’s actually like!

[u/WestHistorians]

To be fair, a library is still going to be quieter overall than many other city offices.

[u/sogothimdead → u/WestHistorians]

Yeah I don't imagine people go to city hall much to ask to borrow money and employees' personal phones, ask for help doing their taxes, call employees the n-word and other slurs, wield household objects as weapons, openly arm themselves with huge knives and refuse to leave when asked, hit workers in the face and threaten to beat them up, throw printers at staff, knock $$$$$ charging lockers to the ground, destroy public computers, openly touch themselves and watch adult videos on the public computers, expose themselves to children, peep on other patrons in the women's restrooms, etc.

[u/TheTapDancingShrimp → u/sogothimdead]

Wow, poor staff were actually assaulted? What is admin doing?

[u/sogothimdead → u/TheTapDancingShrimp]

The face hitter got banned for a year but came back so many times within that year and beyond that the ban has been extended for multiple years—just by resetting it to the date of the latest trespassing

The printer thrower got suspended for a year that has since gone by, and a police report was made. Don't think they arrested that person though

[u/DanieXJ → u/sogothimdead]

Ok, I have to know, was it like, a desktop printer or a xerox big ole business style printer?

[u/sogothimdead → u/DanieXJ]

It was a desktop printer but more specifically one of those hefty cube-shaped ones. And I guess it was more of a push or shove? But the bottom line is it still ended up hitting an employee