New Birmingham Public Library board will decide the future of library closures 
The Birmingham Public Library Board will swear in new board members Tuesday afternoon, making a majority of the appointees first-timers.
“There are nine board members, six of those nine members are new appointed members, and so it’s going to be in fresh blood. It’s new energy, and we all bring a different skill set to the table,” Jordan Davis said, who at 23 years old is one of the youngest members in recent history.
Another notable appointee is comedian Jermaine “Funnymaine” Johnson, who gained a following for his online videos on SEC football.
Over the last few years, the Birmingham Public Library has had its share of controversy. The library board hired an executive director, Floyd Council, in 2017 only to have him resign three years later after staff complaints.
When the pandemic hit in March 2020, libraries temporarily closed, the budget was cut in half and more than 150 employees were furloughed. Most of these workers returned by the end of that year.
Since then, the previous board president, Eunice Johnson Rogers, campaigned to close some of the library locations. Birmingham has more library branches than typical for a city of its size – that’s a legacy of having segregated libraries during the Jim Crow era. Today, some areas have three libraries within three miles of each other. Davis believes the libraries should remain open.
“Our public libraries are the only free and public spaces that we have for community members, and so they’re vital of the life of our community,” said Davis.
Davis said it’s a balancing act for libraries to serve their neighborhoods as well as be good stewards of taxpayer money.
There are four branches that could be closed: East Ensley, Ensley, North Avondale and Titusville.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this story falsely reported that Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin had advocated for library branch closures.
US launches new retaliatory strike in Syria, killing leader tied to deadly Islamic State ambush
A third round of retaliatory strikes by the U.S. in Syria has resulted in the death of an Al-Qaeda-affiliated leader, said U.S. Central Command.
NASA rolls out Artemis II craft ahead of crewed lunar orbit
Mission Artemis plans to send Americans to the moon for the first time since the Nixon administration.
Trump says 8 EU countries to be charged 10% tariff for opposing US control of Greenland
In a post on social media, Trump said a 10% tariff will take effect on Feb. 1, and will climb to 25% on June 1 if a deal is not in place for the United States to purchase Greenland.
‘Not for sale’: massive protest in Copenhagen against Trump’s desire to acquire Greenland
Thousands of people rallied in Copenhagen to push back on President Trump's rhetoric that the U.S. should acquire Greenland.
Uganda’s longtime leader declared winner in disputed vote
Museveni claims victory in Uganda's contested election as opposition leader Bobi Wine goes into hiding amid chaos, violence and accusations of fraud.
Opinion: Remembering Ai, a remarkably intelligent chimpanzee
We remember Ai, a highly intelligent chimpanzee who lived at the Primate Research Institute of Kyoto University for most of her life, except the time she escaped and walked around campus.
