The Austin Public Library will host the UNITY Project starting at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, June 12.

APL Director Julie Clinefelter described the UNITY Project as “an interactive public art project that examines how labels both help and hinder our ability to build as a nation and as a human race.”

“The UNITY Project is part of the Austin Public Library’s Community Collaborations grant we got through the Legacy Funding from the state,” she said. “We’ve been talking a lot about unity, equity and inclusion, and this is one of those things that fits in really well with that.”

The project itself consists of 32 poles that will be located in the grassy area between the library and Horace Austin Park. Each pole will have an identifier, such as “I’m a dog person” or “I speak English as a second language.” The 32nd pole will simply say “I am” for those that identify as something not listed and will feature a chalkboard upon which participants can write that specific identifier. Participants will be given a list of the identifiers. Once they have selected the categories they identify with, they will take a piece of yarn from the center pole and wrap it around their identifiers. Once completed, the string is pushed up high, leaving a web of yarn tat represents the community of Austin.

Clinefelter said she got the idea at an international camp for teenagers last summer.

“I felt like it fit really well with where Austin is right now,” she said. “There are a lot of conversations going on in town about diversity. What I like about it is it talks about how we’re similar, not how we’re different.”

Clinefelter chose the date of the Forth Avenue Fest to kick off the project.

“Fourth Avenue Fest is a great free evening to come out and spend time with the community and interact with other people,” she said.

The project is open to anyone who wishes to participate. The project will be held at the following dates and times:

• • June 12 – 4-8 p.m.
• • June 13 – 4-8 p.m.
• • June 14 – noon to 6 p.m.
• • June 15 – 9 a.m. to noon

“When I did (the UNITY Project), afterwards there were a lot of people who looked at it and were moved by it,” Clinefelter said. “It got them to have conversations with people they otherwise might not have spoken to.”