17h
Anh Do writes: “Libraries around the country, including those in downtown Los Angeles, have long been safe spaces for transients. But Orange County’s homeless population has been increasing sharply in recent years, and the Santa Ana civic center, where the public library is located, is now home to an encampment of more than 400 people that the city council earlier in September labeled ‘a public health crisis.’”
Los Angeles Times, Sept. 23
17h
On September 26, presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump will face one another in the first presidential debate of this election in Hempstead, New York. ALA has joined other groups in an open letter to the debate moderators, calling them to ask candidates about how they will address affordable, high-speed, broadband internet in their infrastructure plans.
District Dispatch, Sept. 26
18h
ASCLA has confirmed its annual fundraising trip will be to the Netherlands and Belgium during Tulip Time 2017. Hosted by AMA Waterways, this seven-night river cruise will take place April 3–10. Amsterdam, Antwerp, Ghent, Bruges, and Rotterdam are some of the towns that travelers will be able to explore. The adventure is open to the library community and their family and friends.
ASCLA, Sept. 26
18h
Zoila Gallegos, a reading specialist with the Los Angeles County Office of Education, has worked at the juvenile lockup in Downey for the past nine years. A year and a half ago, she sent a letter to a county supervisor and asked for a library. On August 29, Gallegos watched as officials from the Office of Education and the county probation and library departments unveiled a new library at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall with 4,000 books and a full-time, on-site librarian.
Los Angeles Times, Sept. 26
19h
The New Mexico Library Foundation has released 2016 New Mexico Libraries Assessment, a comprehensive report that examines the current state of New Mexico’s public, tribal, school, academic, and special libraries. Conducted by national library consultant Penny Hummel, the assessment includes a statewide library survey, as well as focus groups and public community conversations held in several locations across the state.
Ne Mexico Library Foundation, Sept. 26
19h
Brian Barrett writes: “There are two important new things to know about Snapchat. First, it’s just Snap now. That’s easy enough. The second may be a little bit harder to process: The ephemeral chat mavens will sell video-grabbing sunglasses, called Spectacles, starting this fall. Spectacles (Specs, for short), will shoot circular videos. Whatever reservations you might (rightly) have about wearing camera glasses, don’t mistake Specs for Google’s Glass 2.0. They’ve got a lot more going for them than that.”
Wired, Sept. 24
19h
A persistent pattern of attempts to remove certain books from schools and libraries, combined with a lack of diversity in children’s and YA book publishing, narrows the range of stories and perspectives available to US students. Combining quantitative research with interviews from teachers, librarians, students, and authors, Missing from the Shelf: Book Challenges and Lack of Diversity in Children’s Literature describes instances of soft censorship playing out.
PEN America, Sept. 26
