Free Library appoints new leader after racism accusations against current board chair

The board of trustees at the Free Library of Philadelphia has elected a new chairperson to replace Pamela Pryor Dembe, following accusations that she was insensitive to the concerns of Black employees and should resign or be fired.

Folasade A. Olanipekun-Lewis, a library board member and regional director for government and airport affairs at American Airlines, will take the helm of the city library system on June 9.

“I am honored that the Board of Trustees has selected me for this crucial role, and I look forward to working with them, the staff of the Free Library, and those who love the Library as I do as we face the opportunities and challenges to be of service to the City of Philadelphia,” Olanipekun-Lewis said.

Mayor Jim Kenney lauded the selection of Olanipekun-Lewis on Friday.

“Philadelphia has long benefitted from Folasade’s commitment to public service,” he said in a statement. “I know her skills and expertise will be of great benefit to the Free Library and its Board of Trustees.”.

Attempts to reach Dembe, a retired Philadelphia Common Pleas Court judge, who served as board chair for six years, were not successful.

In August, when library employees protested in front of her Chestnut Hill home, Dembe said she would not resign “unless or until the board tells me otherwise.” Asked if she was racist, as the roughly 40 protesters asserted, she replied, “I hope not,” but declined to address specific complaints.

Dembe’s departure comes eight months after Siobhan Reardon, who had served as Free Library president and director for 12 years, resigned when Kenney asked her to step aside after employees accused her of being racially insensitive.

The appointment of Olanipekun-Lewis, a Black woman who most recently served as the treasurer for the board and is the co-chair of the board’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, satisfies one of the demands of library employees who called for Blacks to be elevated to leadership positions. Some of those employees started an organization called the Concerned Black Workers of the Free Library of Philadelphia.

“Folasade has been a key voice on the Board of Trustees, and on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, and her leadership will be invaluable to the Free Library,” said Leslie M. Walker, interim director of the Free Library. “I look forward to working with Folasade to bring about important changes and improvements to the institution.”

Tension between library employees and management burst into public view in late June when the group released an open letter outlining their grievances.

The letter said workers faced discrimination on a regular basis, were paid less than white colleagues, and were being asked to return to work without a plan to keep them safe from the coronavirus.

After receiving no response from Reardon, the Black employees called on her to resign. Black employees, along with supportive white coworkers, then turned their attention to Dembe, who they said had made racially insensitive remarks about Blacks.

Olanipekun-Lewis, who completed secondary school in Nigeria, West Africa, holds an undergraduate degree in economics from the City University of New York, a law degree from Temple’s Beasley School of Law and a master’s degree in government administration from the University of Pennsylvania’s Fels School of Government.

She previously served as city treasurer, chief financial officer for the School District of Philadelphia, deputy commerce director for finance and administration for the city, chief financial Officer for City Council, and chief administrative officer of the Philadelphia International Airport.