Call Number Podcast: Talking About Race

Episode 59 features conversations about race in the US

February 16, 2021

Call Number Episode 59: Talking about Race

In Episode 59, Call Number with American Libraries looks at efforts to move forward the conversations about race and racism in the United States.

First, American Libraries Managing Editor Terra Dankowski speaks with Emmanuel Acho, sports analyst for Fox Sports and former NFL linebacker (and recent Midwinter Virtual featured speaker), about his YouTube series and subsequent book Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man.

Next, American Libraries Senior Editor and Call Number host Phil Morehart speaks with Jessica Bratt, youth services manager at Grand Rapids (Mich.) Public Library, about the Let’s Talk about Race toolkit she created for librarians.

If you have feedback for the podcast team, email us or call 312-857-6761 and leave a message. Tell us what you liked, what you didn’t like, or what you’d like to see us cover; we may feature your comment on a future episode. Follow us on Twitter and SoundCloud and leave us a review on iTunes.

Call Number with American Libraries Podcast · Episode 59: Talking About Race

Tagged Under

Newsmaker: Emmanuel Acho

Sports analyst and former NFL player turns author with uncomfortable book

400 Years of Black American Life

Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain reflect on new volume

Latest Library Links

9h

ALA filed an amicus brief affirming the importance of the Federal Communications Commission’s Universal Service Fund and the E-rate program that helps power broadband-enabled services and access through US public libraries and schools. More than half of all public libraries each year apply for E-rate funding. The brief is part of the record the Supreme Court will review in two consolidated cases (24-354 and 24-422) that will determine the future of vital funding for universal broadband access.

ALA Public Policy & Advocacy Office, Jan. 17
13h

ALA’s Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) seeks nominations for the Herb Biblo Outstanding Leadership Award for Social Justice and Equality, sponsored by Library Juice Academy. Leadership can be demonstrated by accomplishments through SRRT or other ALA bodies, socially responsible groups within state, provincial, regional, or city library organizations, and/or international library organizations. To be eligible for this award, individuals must be members of SRRT or other library organizations or groups with similar goals and objectives. The deadline for nominations is February 15.

Social Responsibilities Round Table
13h

Cass Balzer writes: “Libraries are often gateways to new experiences, and a growing number are now offering patrons the chance to see the world in full color—literally. In recent years, libraries of all sizes have begun adding color-corrective glasses to their Library of Things collections. Made possible primarily through partnerships with manufacturers, patrons can test these glasses out before committing to purchasing their own pair.”

American Libraries Trend, Jan./Feb.
17h

American Libraries collects statistics related to the LibLearnX host city’s literary scene. Find the size of Arizona State University Library in Tempe’s Nicholas A. Salerno Star Wars Collection; the 1974 purchase price of Changing Hands Bookstore, one of Arizona’s largest independent booksellers; the number of Indigenous artists represented in Heard Museum’s Billie Jane Baguley Library and Archives; and the number of books sold by Phoenix author Stephenie Meyer.

American Libraries Trend, Jan./Feb.
5d

“Drawing inspiration from both his Christian faith and the peaceful teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. led a nonviolent civil rights movement in the late 1950s and 1960s to achieve legal equality for African Americans in the US. Each year, the US honors and celebrates King’s life and legacy on the third Monday in January. Here are some books that honor the life and legacy of Dr. King and his role in the civil rights movement.” Find additional booklists from the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta, Colorado Mountain College Libraries, and New Orleans Public Library.

Livingston (N.J.) Public Library, Jan. 8; Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change; Colorado Mountain College Libraries, Jan. 9; New Orleans Public Library, Jan. 13
5d

“After the hundreds (thousands?) of hours trawling through online image collections since the Public Domain Review’s inception, we’ve decided it was time to create one of our own! We are really excited to share with you the launch of our new sister project, the Public Domain Image Archive, a curated collection of more than 10,000 out-of-copyright historical images, free for all to explore and reuse. Our aim is to offer a platform that will serve both as a practical resource and a place to simply wander—an ever-growing portal to discover more than 2,000 years of visual culture.”

Public Domain Review, Jan. 8
5d

The New York Public Library has acquired the archive of Jhumpa Lahiri, shedding new light on the award-winning author and multilingual translator. Comprising 31 boxes of material stretching to nearly 40 linear feet, the archive, which will become publicly available in 2025, chronicles Lahiri’s literary accomplishments from a young age and her commitment to critical reading, the nuances of language, and the craft of writing. Highlights include correspondence with friends and peer writers including Michael Cunningham, Jennifer Egan, Elena Ferrante, Salman Rushdie, Amy Tan, and others, and notebooks and drawings from Lahiri’s teenage years.

New York Public Library, Jan. 13