CURRENT POSITION Founder and Head Librarian, Ottawa Trans Library, Ontario DEGREE BA, English, Carleton University, Ottawa FOLLOW ottawatranslibrary.ca; Instagram @ottawa_trans_library; transottawa.ca Photo by Ash Barnes

Trans Mission

Even before founding the Ottawa Trans Library, Tara Sypniewski forged the path she needed. As a trans woman “not living as my authentic self in the transphobic late 1970s,” she struggled to find a job that wouldn’t suffocate her. After landing a position at the National Museums of Canada, Sypniewski secured a transfer to the departmental library despite her lack of a library degree, and worked her way through every role there before retiring in 2014. “I found a place among the books where I could breathe a little,” she says.

In 2022, she recognized another need, this one community-wide. Recalling how hard it was to find books that reflected her experience when she was younger, Sypniewski—a longtime trans activist—opened the Trans Library in a former antique store on one of Ottawa’s most diverse main streets. It’s a safe space for trans and gender diverse people, she says, “where they can meet, learn about themselves, and investigate their history; a place for parents of trans kids; and a place where the community can engage with trans folks on a personal level.” The lending collection includes books by trans authors and historical and important works on trans issues and people. It’s a gathering spot as well, with tables for studying or socializing, free coffee, and poetry readings, discussion groups, and parents’ coffee hours. Community members offer warm and affirming feedback: “Efforts like yours restore the spirits of those who hope. Together we will prevail.”

Sypniewski serves as head librarian, greeter, public relations person, guest speaker, event organizer, and floor mopper. She’s also the main fundraiser, and while she has enough saved to pay the lease for two years and have an acquisitions budget, she hopes to keep the library, a registered nonprofit, going indefinitely through donations and grants; its web page has information on how to help out.

“This library has become far more important to people than I realized when I first opened it,” she says. “People have told me it’s a precious resource that needs to be here after I’m gone. My challenge is to ensure that it will be.”