Wong-Kalu was a featured speaker at the American Library Association’s (ALA) 2023 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago on June 25. In conversation with ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada, Wong-Kalu discussed what it means to be māhū, her recently released picture book Kapaemahu, and what advice she would give to young people in these contentious … Continue reading Role and Responsibility
Jefferson spoke of the “twin pandemics” that have marked his tenure as president—COVID-19 and systemic racism—and pointed out that only the virus seems to be reaching resolution. “Isabel Wilkerson and her book Caste help explain why,” he said. Simone Stone, an MSLIS student at the School of Information Services at the University of Illinois at … Continue reading History, Race, and Caste
Brown prefaced the main event—a conversation between Abrams and ALA Executive Director Tracie D. Hall—by noting how both COVID-19 and police brutality disproportionately affect African Americans and other communities of color. “The coronavirus is new, unlike racism, which is as old as time,” she said. Brown asked if deaths like George Floyd’s could have been … Continue reading An Act of Persistence
“I was growing up hungry in a single-parent, dysfunctional home in the 1960s,” he told the crowd at American Library Association President Wanda Kay Brown’s program at the Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits in Philadelphia on January 26. “I had a little homeboy dream that I’d be able to buy a house on a hill with … Continue reading Hungry with Knowledge
Smith has been traveling around the US, but instead of reading at the usual bookstores and college campuses, she’s been hitting public libraries, churches, and community centers. She said the sense of gathering in these spaces has been intimate and inspiring. For example, she read her work in a men’s rehab facility, and although the … Continue reading President’s Program Speakers Address Citizenship through Poetry, Memoir
The program featured a sprawling discussion in which multiple definitions of neutrality were proposed, and various positions were argued for and against them. The rhetoric was lively and occasionally prickly on the stage, in the audience, and on social media. Are libraries neutral spaces? Have they ever been? You're not going to want to miss … Continue reading Are Libraries Neutral?
Returning to McCormick Place—and ALA’s hometown—after four years, Annual will offer a host of professional development opportunities, new ideas to help shape the future of libraries, a full slate of author programs and fascinating speakers, and a variety of special events and other activities. This preview offers a small sample of what to expect. Click … Continue reading 2017 ALA Annual Conference Preview
“He said, ‘One, we need you more than ever. Two, what would Martin Luther King Jr. do? Three, I need to know we’re not going backward. Four, I need someone to tell me what to do,’” said Alexander. And like that, Alexander’s thoughtful, rhapsodic verse set to accomplishing these objectives, and then some. Introduced by ALA … Continue reading Kwame Alexander: Poetry is the Answer
“You are the gatekeepers; the keepers of the keys of education and words, and you’ve let me in the gate,” she said. “It’s my privilege to be in your presence.” Curtis’s deference was coupled with humble honesty. She spoke openly about her struggles in school as a youth and how it has affected all aspects … Continue reading This is Jamie Lee
Introduced by ALA President Sari Feldman and Trevor Dawes and Martin Garnar of the Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, which cosponsored the event, Booker was on hand to talk about themes from his forthcoming book United (Penguin Random House, February 2016), including ideas for coming together, improving our country’s access to information and … Continue reading Cory Booker Headlines President’s Program
Why do you think story is the tool with which to combat the “real-life horcruxes” of inequality, illiteracy, and human rights violations? A good story opens us up, makes us vulnerable. And in that moment of vulnerability, we can be preyed on or prayed for. We’ve seen stories put to a lot of bad use. … Continue reading How Harry Potter Changed
This Man’s Life
