Children’s Diversity & Justice Library COVID-19 Statement

Dear patrons, friends, followers and volunteers, 

The Children’s Diversity & Justice Library’s (CDJL) physical library space and collection are hosted by the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church (TVUUC) in Knoxville, Tennessee, a community rooted in values of equity and compassion where people can find common ground and work together for common good.  TVUUC has decided that the best contribution to the common good is to cooperate with the Centers for Disease Control and other public health organizations to contain COVID-19, reduce the spread of the disease and end the pandemic.  With a mission to empower young people to celebrate diversity and seek justice in their lives and communities, which we believe includes prioritizing the health and welfare of those most vulnerable to this disease and likely to suffer the most drastic symptoms and outcomes, we agree with this assessment.  For this reason we will be closing the physical CDJ library to the patrons and the public as of March 12, 2020. We will follow the Covid-19 policies set by our host organization, TVUUC, who is continuously monitoring the situation and will determine the appropriate time to re-open our physical space. 

Fortunately, moving forward in our mission to empower youth to celebrate diversity and seek justice in their lives and communities does not depend solely on having our physical space open to the public. During this time of physical distancing:

  • we are hosting an online storytime featuring diverse picture books for approximately ages 2 - 8 via Facebook live on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 4:00pm EDT. You do not need a Facebook account to view the storytime and you can return to view it at any time if you miss it live. Please continue to follow, like and share our Facebook posts and messages to stay up to date on these efforts.  

  • our lending program is open to existing patrons, and TVUUC members and families, via online reservations and contactless curbside pickup. See “Borrow A Book” on this page to learn how to participate.

Be well friends!