The Source: A Shared Shelter in the City’s Heart

Most people think of libraries as places to do research or borrow books. But at the Los Angeles Public Library, they're offering something more: a sanctuary, a resource hub, and a lifeline for those navigating homelessness and housing instability.

On the last Tuesday of every month, the LA Central Library transforms into a vital community space for people experiencing homelessness. Tables fill the courtyard, volunteers arrive, and The Source, a resource fair connecting hundreds of people with housing support, legal aid, healthcare, job training, and even free cell phones, begins.

Shared Shelter in the City’s Heart: a documentary of The Source is a 360° immersive documentary that places you inside this space. Through firsthand perspectives and intimate interviews with librarians, outreach workers, service providers, and community members, including those who've experienced homelessness themselves, the film shows what happens when government agencies, nonprofits, and library staff coordinate to deliver resources, services, and care all in one accessible location.

Shot entirely within the walls of Central Library by USC Annenberg Digital Social Media students, The Source invites you to step inside and witness the unseen side of the Los Angeles Central Library.

Learn More & Get Involved Explore the Los Angeles Public Library's social services, volunteer opportunities, and ways to support this vital work: https://www.lapl.org/homeless-resources