About Us
We are the first black-owned poetry library in the state of California. We aim to engage with the South L.A. community by offering a space to read, write, study, perform, and appreciate poetry.
Our Mission
To serve, educate, and find love for poetry, especially for marginalized people of color in the community of South Los Angeles.
Where We Started
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Hiram Sims, our founder, started lending books to his poetry students out of this suitcase after mandating that they read one book of poetry a week. As demand grew, his suitcase library was forced to seek a larger home.
Where We've Been
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The Sims Library of Poetry got its official start in Hiram & Charisse's garage with a collection of about 3,000 books. Poetry open-mics and other events were held in the Sims backyard as a community began to establish itself around the growing library. Together, Charisse and Hiram co-founded the neighborhood version of The Sims Library of poetry.
Where We Are
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In the summer of 2020, the poetry collection found a permanent home for our library at 2702 W. Florence Ave, which was the site Hidden Gems Preschool, created by Charisse. Once the pandemic struck and the school was forced to close, she offered the space to The Sims Library of Poetry. Since then, we've grown by leaps and bounds. We now have over 10,000 books (and counting!
Co-Founders, Hiram and Charisse Sims
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