Because the presence of racism, bias, and bigotry in any of our LIS institutions limits our reach and the possibility of realizing the full promise and potential of an equitably informed public, we must go beyond hashtags, statements, and committees and do the hands-on work needed to systemically uproot racism. This requires that we be … Continue reading Reflections on Race and Racism
Booklist recently compiled a list of antiracist books and other resources for librarians and readers. The full list is reprinted below. It can, of course, also mean reading. We’ve seen the antiracist reading lists; there’s New York magazine’s roundup, Betsy Bird’s comprehensive piece for Fuse8, the Stacks’ collection of nonfiction, the list goes on. There’s … Continue reading Reading for Change
The Executive Board of the American Library Association (ALA) stands with the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA) in condemning violence and racism toward black people and all people of color. The ALA Executive Board endorses BCALA’s May 28 statement, in which the caucus decries the death of George Floyd at the hands of … Continue reading ALA Executive Board Stands with BCALA
The Executive Board of the American Library Association (ALA) stands with the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) in condemning xenophobia and racism. The ALA Executive Board endorses APALA’s March 13 statement, in which it “unequivocally denounce[d] the rise in racism and xenophobia against Asians and Asian/Pacific Americans in the wake of the outbreak of COVID-19 … Continue reading ALA Executive Board Stands with APALA in Condemning Xenophobia, Racism
The following guest column is a reprint from the rereleased May 1 issue of Booklist. This is an opportunity to have substantive conversations about our perceptions, as well as the changing face of the publishing world and the paucity of diverse crime writers. In their desire to be socially conscious, many may have missed that … Continue reading Judged by the Cover
In this special bonus episode of the Dewey Decibel podcast, American Libraries Senior Editor and Dewey Decibel host Phil Morehart talks with Moore about his book, socioeconomic conditions in Baltimore, and how Enoch Pratt Free Library was the bedrock of the city during the riots. If you have feedback for the Dewey Decibel team, email deweydecibel@ala.org. Tell us … Continue reading Dewey Decibel Podcast: Freddie Gray and Baltimore, Five Years Later
Tracie D. Hall is current ALA executive director. This article appeared in the February 2007 issue of American Libraries magazine, when Hall was assistant dean at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois. By the time my grandparents purchased what my grandmother referred to as an “old … Continue reading Race and Place
The flames of any mistrust that might have already surrounded this census have been fanned at least twice: First, by the new option to complete the form online, which may be met with diffidence by the 52% of American adults whom the Pew Research Center calls “relatively hesitant” about using digital tools, and which may … Continue reading Fact Versus Fear
Bettina Love, education professor and author of We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom (Beacon Press, 2019), posed this question to attendees of the Public Library Association 2020 Conference’s Big Ideas session in Nashville on February 27. In her dynamic talk, she confronted the ways in which … Continue reading Calling on Co-Conspirators
In this multipart series, American Libraries presents case studies and interviews with thought leaders looking at research trends in academic libraries. We’ll be covering the topics of social justice, information literacy, digital archives, faculty outreach, and new technology. This is the sixth story in the series. It’s been more than two years since the university chose … Continue reading A Monumental Debate: Addressing Controversial Namesakes
“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
Moore—author, social entrepreneur, and US Army combat veteran—detailed the events of that day, the subsequent five days of rioting, and the circumstances that led to it in his Opening Session talk at the American Library Association’s 2020 Midwinter Meeting & Exhibits in Philadelphia on Friday. It’s a story that he chronicles in his forthcoming book, … Continue reading Five Days That Changed a City
