Birmingham Public Library Blog

  The Birmingham Public Library is offering several programs and activities this week to celebrate the legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King., Jr . All BPL locations will be closed for the 2025 MLK Federal Holiday on Monday, January 20.  BPL Activities will include Begin the Day: The 22nd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Lecture at 1:00 p.m. this Saturday, January 18, in the Central Library and an MLK’s legacy talk at Powderly Branch Library at 11:00 a.m. this Thursday, January 16 by Charles Woods III of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute.  King played a prominent role in Birmingham in the fight against racism during the Civil Rights Movement. His efforts led to King winning the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize. A copy of the MLK Letter from a Birmingham Jail is housed in the BPL Archives Department's world-renowned civil rights collection.    Here is a listing of BPL's MLK programs and activities happening this week by location:  Avondale Regional Li...

 Event:  "Begin the Day: The Martin Luther King Memorial Lecture" featuring M. Dominique Villanueva. Details: This year's speaker is M. Dominique Villanueva, cofounder of Fountain Heights Farm. speaking on "Liberation Through the Land: Connecting Black Liberation to Urban Farming" Date:  Saturday January 18, 2025, 1:00 p.m. Where:  Birmingham Public Library Central Library, 2100 Park Place, Birmingham, AL 35207, Arrington Auditorium, 4th Floor of BPL Research Library Admission:  Free and open to the public  Birmingham, Ala. – The Birmingham Public Library (BPL) is proud to announce the 22nd Annual "Begin the Day: The Martin Luther King Memorial Lecture," featuring M. Dominique Villanueva, co-founder of Fountain Heights Farms. This inspiring and thought-provoking lecture will take place on Saturday, January 18, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. at the BPL Central Library in the Arrington Auditorium, fourth floor of the Research Library. The event is free and open to ...

  Struggling with high blood pressure? The Birmingham Public Library has several locations able to help you keep your blood pressure in check.  Join us at Pratt City Branch Library, 509 Dugan Avenue, at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, January 15, as the library partners with Mills Pharmacy to hold a Blood Pressure Brunch. This program aims to educate the community on the importance of understanding blood pressure and how it affects us all. A light brunch will be provided. This event is free, but attendees are asked to call 205-791-4997 to register in advance to help with a general head count. Did you know that patrons can now check out blood pressure monitoring kits at five Birmingham Public Library locations - Central, Avondale, Springville Road, Five Points West and North Birmingham?  The  Birmingham American Heart Association,  helped to bring the blood pressure kits to the Birmingham Public Library in 2023 through its Libraries with a Heart Loaner Blood Press...

" Detox 101," taught by ShaeJae Wellness LLC on January 15, and  "Rooted Connections: Postpartum Wellness Gathering," led by Sharita Creer on January 18 are among several programs promoting health and wellness that the Springville Road Regional Library is hosting throughout January 2025. Birmingham Ala. - Did you make New Year’s resolutions regarding health and wellness? If so, check out the resources available at the Springville Road Regional Branch Library, 1224 Old Springville Road. Join us for  Detox 101,  hosted by  ShaeJae Wellness LLC at 10::00 a.m. on January 15, 2025. Learn how to live a holistic lifestyle and improve your mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. Certified Holistic Wellness Coach ShaeJae will teach you how to eat cleaner and feel better for 2025.  Are you a new parent, looking for guidance on postpartum wellness? If so, you are welcome to register for Rooted Connections: Postpartum Wellness Gathering , held between 1:00 p.m. and 5...

   Self-Care MasterMind: Community Edition, a wellness coaching series, kicks off Tuesday, January 7.  C.J. Wade is instructor of Self-Care MasterMind, a BPL monthly wellness coaching series    Would you like to make your physical, mental, and emotional health a priority in 2025? Then plan on joining the  Birmingham Public Library  every month at the Central Library downtown for the "Self-Care Mastermind: Community Edition."  The series kicks off next Tuesday, January 7, at 5:30 p.m. in the BPL Research Library's 4th Floor Arrington Auditorium, 2100 Park Place.   The program topic will be different each month, but all will focus on improving your overall well-being by engaging in purposeful and persistent health practices. Each presentation will consist of lecture, discussion, and audience participation.  The instructor for the Self-Care Mastermind: Community Edition series is Christina (C. J.) Wade. Ms. Wade is a licensed...

  Join us at the Central Library, 2100 Park Place in downtown Birmingham, at 6:30 p.m. this Friday, January 3 for the Birmingham Public Library 's first Bards & Brews Open Mic spoken word poetry event of 2025.  If you wanted to read original poetry before a friendly audience of your peers, Bards & Brews is the place to be. Doors open at 6::30 p.m.. This event is free to the public. You must be 18 or older to enter, and 21 or older to drink alcoholic beverages (I.D. required).    Thed Weller, host of Bards & Brews Hosted by Thed Weller, Bards & Brews is a spoken word poetry performance/tasting event hosted by the Birmingham Public Library  - usually held on the first Friday of each month except December. Slams are held quarterly in April, July, and October; the other sessions are open mic.   In its 13th year, Bards & Brews has built a reputation as metro Birmingham's premier spoken word poetry event, described in this 2019 profile ...

  Over 80 free holiday programs and activities happening at  14 of our libraries across the city  throughout December are drawing to a close this week as the Birmingham Public Library helps patrons get ready for 2025.   At 11:00 a.m. today in the Central Library's Research Library 4th Floor Computer Center at 2101 Park Place downtown, Paul Boncella of the BPL Southern History Department is hosting a workshop guiding patrons on how to use DNA testing kits to research their family tree.  Smithfield Branch Library, #1 8th Avenue West , is hosting the last chair aerobics class and last coloring "Between the Lines" workshop of the year.   Today through Thursday, January 2,  Southside Branch Library, 1814 11th Avenue South,  has grab-n-go wreath kits available celebrating Kwanzaa - free of charge while supplies last.   For more information on BPL programs and activities, go to the calendar on our  BPL website .  Below is...

  Paul Boncella, map conservator for BPL's Southern History Department, will lead the free "Getting the Most from Your DNA Ancestry Test" workshop happening Monday at the Central Library. Birmingham, Ala. - Did you receive a DNA test kit as a holiday gift?  If you desire to learn more about genealogy as you prepare to research your family tree, make plans now to take advantage of a free workshop, "Getting the Most from Your DNA Ancestry Test," happening at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, December 30, at the Central Library in downtown Birmingham. Class instructor Paul Boncella will provide an overview of DNA testing basics. The DNA  Ancestry Test workshop will take place in the 4th Floor Computer Center in the BPL Research Library, 2100 Park Place. It is open to both in-person attendees as well as for patrons online. There is no need to register in person. To register online via Zoom, click here.   In an interview below, Boncella gives a preview of what to expect.  ...