COVID-19 Archives | American Libraries Magazine

ALA Announces LibLearnX Will Be Virtual

September 15, 2021

On September 15, the American Library Association (ALA) Executive Board issued a statement about transitioning LibLearnX (LLX), ALA’s upcoming conference, to a virtual-only format. The full statement follows: The American Library Association’s Executive Board announced today that LibLearnX: The Library Learning Experience, scheduled for January 21–24, 2022, in San Antonio, will take place virtually. “Given the … Continue reading ALA Announces LibLearnX Will Be Virtual →

LIS and the Next Crisis

By Emily J. M. Knox | September 1, 2021

God gave Noah the rainbow sign No more water, the fire next time! (“Mary Don’t You Weep,” Black American spiritual) I will never forget Friday, March 13, 2020, the last day we worked in our building. It was also our admitted-student day, and several attendees had already arrived. Our staff quickly arranged a socially distanced … Continue reading LIS and the Next Crisis →

Barbara Lison, IFLA President-elect, in her session "20 Trends for Discussion"

IFLA: Closing Virtually with a Call to Action

By Raymond Pun | August 25, 2021

On August 18, the IFLA News Media Section presented “Libraries Enable News Literacy: Finding Solutions to Fake News.” Moderator Ana Krahmer, director of the Digital Newspaper Unit at University of North Texas Libraries, talked with panelists about how to support information literacy for the public. Presenters included data scientists Katharina Beckh and Vishwani Gupta from … Continue reading IFLA: Closing Virtually with a Call to Action →

Young woman in blue shirt reads the 10th edition of ALA's Intellectual Freedom Manual

Intellectual Freedom: A Manual for Library Workers

By Amy Carlton | July 8, 2021

What were some of the biggest changes in the manual—such as new laws, policy updates, privacy rules, and technology issue—since the ninth edition in 2015? MARTIN GARNAR: One of the biggest changes was the sheer number of new interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights—eight in total, with topics ranging from religion and politics to … Continue reading Intellectual Freedom: A Manual for Library Workers →

From the Executive Director by Tracie D. Hall

A Little Light to See By

By Tracie D. Hall | July 8, 2021

I was almost through with a first draft when a nagging truth asserted itself, insisting I speak to it: that the challenges, uncertainties, and indeed, opportunities we have faced during and emerging from the pandemic have taken their toll on us, in the form of worry, fatigue, and stress. And yes, though I firmly and … Continue reading A Little Light to See By →

Julius C. Jefferson Jr. and Crosby Kemper III

Realms of Opportunity

By Shawnda Hines | June 29, 2021

Kemper started his position in January 2020 with “mixed messages”—he’d been appointed by a president who had proposed defunding IMLS over three consecutive years and unanimously confirmed in the Senate, which had approved increases for the agency over the same period. There was no time to process the president’s fourth proposed elimination before the pandemic … Continue reading Realms of Opportunity →

Getting Back into the Community

By Phil Morehart | June 26, 2021

“[During the pandemic], the definition of outreach was put to the test,” Zimmerman said. She detailed the ways in which libraries across the country pivoted in their outreach and service methods: offering contactless deliveries and curbside services, repurposing outreach vans to become delivery vehicles and mobile Wi-Fi hotspots, making phone calls to connect with seniors … Continue reading Getting Back into the Community →

Hands holding small red heart with banner -- text reads The ALA COVID Library Relief Fund

ALA Distributes COVID-19 Emergency Relief

June 25, 2021

Through the ALA COVID Library Relief Fund, grantees representing academic, public, school, and tribal libraries will receive grants between $30,000 and $50,000 to support library services and operations. The ALA COVID Library Relief Fund represents a significant nonfederal grant opportunity for libraries. The funds support libraries’ efforts to increase and enhance technology access, collection development, … Continue reading ALA Distributes COVID-19 Emergency Relief →

Libraries and the Law

By Mary Minow and Tomas A. Lipinski | June 1, 2021

We’ve assembled some of their most topical entries, touching on copyright issues for remote learning, face-mask exceptions, and liability waivers, among other things. The information in this column does not constitute legal advice, nor does it necessarily reflect the views of ALA or PLA. It is meant to serve as a starting point for librarians … Continue reading Libraries and the Law →

Old-School Outreach

By Bill Furbee | June 1, 2021

“The pandemic has highlighted the barriers to access that many people have regarding technology and reliable internet,” says Kathleen Montgomery, outreach manager at Charleston County (S.C.) Public Library (CCPL). “It’s our mission to address these inequities.” To do so, libraries across the US have implemented creative concepts and partnerships that embrace analog technologies and platforms. … Continue reading Old-School Outreach →

From the President, by Julius C. Jefferson Jr.

Moving Forward

By Julius C. Jefferson Jr. | June 1, 2021

Thanks to all who joined me last summer on the virtual “Holding Space” tour, a conversation series with libraries. I will forever remember you as faithful partners and travel companions as we faced seemingly insurmountable difficulties. Thanks in part to our advocacy, libraries secured federal relief funding of historic proportions. ALA staff and leadership managed … Continue reading Moving Forward →

To Survive, We Must Transform

By Tracie D. Hall | June 1, 2021

My friend is a well-respected educational consultant and author of half a dozen books. In a phone call shortly after she returned home, I was delighted to learn that, though she was still weak and had limited mobility, she was finishing a book she had been working on before her illness. “I’m writing for a … Continue reading To Survive, We Must Transform →

Latest Library Links

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Sallyann Price writes: “Birdwatching has exploded in popularity during the pandemic, with The New York Times last year observing record participation in Global Big Day, an annual birdwatching event in early May, and the National Audubon Society reporting a boom in sales of birding supplies. Libraries, too, are flocking to the hobby. With help from their collections and community partners, they’re working to get patrons outside—even if it’s just a backyard or neighborhood park.”

American Libraries Trend, Sept./Oct.
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Araceli Méndez Hintermeister writes: “Embarking on a new design or renovation project at your library can be overwhelming. These works, ranging from books on user design to volumes on architectural planning, will help spark ideas.”

American Libraries column, Sept./Oct.
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The Plum Creek Literacy Festival in Seward, Nebraska, canceled its Children’s Festival and Adult Conference September 24–25 after several authors withdrew in protest of Concordia University’s code of conduct, which they called discriminatory toward the LGBT community. The absence of several books from a presale list, and a subsequent explanation for why one author was pulling out of the event that went viral on social media, led the festival to cancel its Friday and Saturday activities.

Lincoln (Neb.) Journal-Star, Sept. 23
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Kimberly Johnson and Jennifer Greb write: “As the 100th anniversary of the devastating 1921 Tulsa race massacre approached and Tulsa City–County Library looked for ways to educate the community about a significant piece of our city’s past, we had a disturbing realization: Many of our patrons, even those native to Tulsa, knew little to nothing about it. Decades of whitewashed reports and unacknowledged losses added up to a serious gap in how we understand our local and national history.”

American Libraries Trend, Sept./Oct.
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R. E. Hawley writes: “I’m going to describe an image for you; maybe it’s something you’ve seen before. It’s a canvas filled with amorphous daubs of warm, bright color, intersecting with one another to form different hues in the overlapping spaces. On top of the canvas, a blocky but refined sans serif spells the title and the author’s name. I am, of course, describing a book cover—or rather, the book cover, that of the current literary zeitgeist, whose abstract splotches are a ubiquitous presence in the new releases display at your local bookstore. Writer Alana Pockros calls it the unicorn frappuccino cover.”

Print, Sept. 23
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Heather Kelly and Geoffrey A. Fowler write: “We all know it’s important to protect our privacy online to prevent things as simple as our birthdate or as detailed as our search history from being used by companies, strangers, and even governments. Unfortunately, it’s hard to know where to start. We have gone through the settings for the most popular (and problematic) services to give you recommendations on what exactly you should do.”

Washington Post, Sept. 23
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Laura Solomon writes: “In my job as a front end designer/developer, I work with a lot of library logos. I also work with a lot of library staff that don’t understand the importance of what logos do, or how a good one is created. When faced with a subpar logo, there’s often not much I can do other than work with whatever I’ve been given. Even libraries with awful logos cannot undertake a redesign lightly, or particular staff people may be emotionally invested in their creation and don’t want something new … even if it’s better.”

Mean Laura, Aug. 17

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