Librarians are quietly building a resistance to Big Tech — and the public is showing up

Libraries across the country are hosting "Avoiding AI" workshops — sessions that teach people how to use technology without surrendering to the algorithms. The demand has been unprecedented. People who normally avoid libraries are lining up for a seat.

The workshops aren't anti-technology. They're anti-dominance. Librarians are teaching people to read the terms, to choose their tools carefully, to recognize when a product is designed to extract rather than serve. It's practical literacy in a world where every app wants a piece of you.

This is the kind of thing you don't notice until it's too late — libraries quietly educating the public while the platforms consolidate. The fact that it's happening at all is worth paying attention to.

Why this matters for us: La gente in our communities is being told what to use by companies in San Francisco; when the library teaches you how to choose, you get to keep your voice.