We, the undersigned, who are the faculty, staff, students, and supporters of the Department of Mathematics oppose the closure of our Mathematics and Statistics Library. We urge university management to reconsider its policy of reducing funding to the UC Berkeley library system, for we believe that this system is a key component of our identity as a university.

The closure of the Mathematics and Statistics Library is part of a longer process: funds are being siphoned out of the UC Berkeley library system to other departments and services. We find this trend extremely concerning, for we believe the Library exemplifies the democratic ideal in a way few other institutions do today. Free knowledge, accessible to all, regardless of skill or class, strengthens the soul of our university. By protecting this library, we can affirm our campus’s commitment to the public good and draw impassioned students and professors to UC Berkeley. We are a public university—should not the public good be our goal?

The Mathematics and Statistics Library in Evans Hall is a major resource for the members of the Mathematics department here at UC Berkeley. Students regularly use this library to study and print out homework for their classes. Furthermore, the book collection is essential to those beginning to do readings in mathematics. Experienced researchers know what publications to read to further their research pursuits, but those starting their research need the accidental discoveries that happen while browsing the shelves in order to broaden their horizons. The Mathematics and Statistics Library is thus key to the university’s teaching mission.

We understand that hard decisions must be made. This is exactly why we have signed this petition: why we are protesting the library closures. As mathematicians, we are not (except for a few inspiring exceptions) known for social action. We have stepped out of our comfort zones because we believe libraries are a cause worth protecting. We encourage UCB managers to step out of their comfort zones as they search for a solution to the university’s funding crisis. Can we request more funding from lawmakers in Sacramento? Can some of us continue to live comfortably with reduced wages? These are hard questions, and we, the undersigned, are not entirely confident we know the answers. But we hope that, before reducing library services, UCB management will search again for alternatives. We, the undersigned members of the mathematics department here at UC Berkeley, believe these libraries are worth protecting, and hope you, reader, shall come to believe this too.