Two days after authorities said a man attacked a Worcester librarian with a skateboard, the director of the city’s public libraries called on residents to show their support at an annual street festival on Saturday.
According to city officials, the entire Worcester Public Library was closed Friday after a patron struck a library employee in the head Thursday afternoon, leaving him unconscious and bleeding.
A 31-year-old Worcester man is charged with assault in connection with the incident. City officials called the attack “unprovoked.”
Jason Homer, the library’s executive director, thanked the community for its support in a social media post Friday night and expressed his hope that people would attend the library’s annual Community Block Party on Saturday.
“We need to bring our community together,” Homer said.
The street festival will take place from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the main branch of the library at 3 Salem Square, where the employee was attacked on Thursday.
The street festival, now in its fourth year, will feature food trucks, ice cream, more than 60 vendors, a DJ, face painting and various other events for people of all ages, the library system said.
Further details are available on the library’s Facebook page.
The library branch reopened Saturday, city officials said.
The suspect in Thursday’s attack, Harry Frotman of Worcester, appeared in Worcester District Court on Friday on a charge of aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon. He pleaded not guilty.
Judge Robert J. Pellegrini held Frotman on $10,000 bail. Frotman’s next court date is Sept. 9, according to court records.
City Manager Eric D. Batista said Thursday that the city has “worked closely with library leadership to meet the changing needs of users … including the creation of a community resources department staffed with a community officer, two security officers and a social worker.”
“In addition, staff has been trained in trauma-informed de-escalation techniques,” Batista said. “However, violence is not acceptable and will not be tolerated. The Worcester Public Library will continue to be an open and welcoming place for all members of the community, but this sacred place and those who operate it must be treated with respect, honor and dignity.”
“It’s not just the library staff who create our environment,” Homer added in his statement Friday. “It’s the visitors who help create the atmosphere of the library. Staff can’t do that alone.”
He said employees were looking forward to “reopening as a strong, united community.”
