When Missouri’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education stopped gathering data on school library collections, Amy Taylor found herself talking to others equally concerned with the loss of the information school libraries needed to advocate for funding. While public libraries have a legislative committee to lobby at the state level, no school library advocacy committee existed. Taylor stepped up to chair a task force studying how school librarians could raise awareness of what they do.
In Shavonn-Haevyn Matsuda's MLISc program at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, she focused on examining and challenging inadequacies of access in information systems and library services. Later, after becoming head librarian at the University of Hawai‘i Maui College Library, Matsuda’s doctoral research investigated creating a system of information for Hawaiian archives and librarianship.
In 2015, as an offshoot of a student leadership congress where he was a delegate, Kevin Conrad Tansiongco founded the Magbasa Tayo (Let’s Read) Movement, an advocacy campaign promoting the importance of community reading centers and public libraries in the Philippines.
As senior librarian at San José Public Library, Lizzie Nolan manages programs, collections, and outreach for both the Children’s Room and teen space known as TeenHQ and has executed and evaluated yearlong literacy programs for the entire 26-branch system. In 2021, Nolan was tasked with leading San José’s Youth Commission, the official youth advisory group to the mayor and city council.
When Eryn Duffee moved to Washington from Tennessee in early 2021, she immediately jumped into leadership at the Washington Library Association, where she is working to transform the statewide school system.
As the synagogue librarian for Temple Rodef Shalom Library and a children’s book consultant, Kusel says she wants to see more literary mirrors for children who are Jewish and offer windows to youth of different faiths to better understand Jewish beliefs and culture.
Lindsey Kimery stepped up her advocacy efforts as the Tennessee legislature crafted bills such as the Age Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 and an Obscenity and Pornography bill, each an attack on intellectual freedom. “Lindsey rallied librarians across the district and state to speak up and speak out on behalf of those who would be affected,” says nominator Alyssa Littrell, Metro Nashville Public Schools district librarian.
Alicia Deal and KayCee Choi nominated each other for the same reason—their advocacy for d/Deaf (Hard of Hearing/Deaf) culture. The two have spearheaded Dallas Public Library programming for National Deaf History Month in April; Deal and Choi created programs about major league baseball player William Hoy and author and activist Helen Keller, among others, which drew about 100 patrons total.
In 2019, Lambert was selected to be part of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Equity and Action Forum. ISTE wanted participants to work on a yearlong project involving equity in education.
Two community members are suing Louisiana’s Lafayette Consolidated Government, the municipal body that oversees the Lafayette Public Library (LPL), for denying the right to free speech in public board meetings. Lynette Mejía and Melanie Brevis, community members and patrons of LPL, are co-plaintiffs in the suit, which also names Board of Control President Robert Judge. According to local newspaper The Acadiana Advocate, the lawsuit alleges the violation of Mejía’s and Brevis’s First Amendment rights to free speech as well as their 14th Amendment rights, along with violations of the Louisiana Open Meetings Law.
Prince George’s County Memorial Library System, MD, last August hosted its first annual social justice summer camp. During five full days at five separate branches, groups of teens learned about the history of social justice movements along with project management skills to help effect change in their own communities.
Virginia Cononie, assistant librarian/coordinator of reference and research at the University of South Carolina Upstate Spartanburg Library, was named one of Library Journal’s 2022 Movers & Shakers for her library advocacy work. LJ recently reached out to Cononie to learn more about her Share Your Story campaign, a collection of success stories from libraries in South Carolina that were compiled into a book and sent to South Carolina lawmakers.
The American Library Association's Office of Intellectual Freedom tracked 729 attempts to ban or restrict library resources in K–12, higher ed, and public libraries in all of 2021, targeting 1,597 unique titles—itself the highest number of attempted book bans since ALA began keeping track of challenged books more than 20 years ago.
The title of the inaugural U.S. Book Show’s opening track, “Libraries Are Essential,” was likely a well-worn sentiment for much of its audience. But coming at the beginning of Publishers Weekly’s (PW) virtual event , held May 25–27 to replace the retired BookExpo, the block of public and academic library–centered programming offered a pointed message to publishing capping a year marked by complicated relations between libraries and e-content publishers.
The challenge for libraries is, first, to obtain and spend federal funding, and second, to parlay that temporary help into a permanent paradigm shift. The new equipment will outlast the emergency. It is up to library leaders to document its ongoing impacts, so that when breakage and age take their inevitable toll, funders will find it unthinkable not to replace and upgrade the gear.
As early as December 2020, many were advocating for library workers to be included in early distribution categories. Even in the absence of broad recategorization, however, some library leaders have effectively lobbied to have staff across their entire systems vaccinated. Using a range of strategies, they have ensured that their state or local health department officials understand that library workers fill essential, public-facing roles, and are cared for accordingly.
University of Washington iSchool researchers present an overview of the Open Data Literacy project's work to date, and share highlights from a survey of the current landscape of open data in Washington State's public libraries.
On February 22, the University of California San Diego (UCSD) Library launched the inaugural Art of Science Contest, inviting UCSD researchers to submit the most beautiful image “that explains their work in a way that is both engaging and accessible to non-scientists.” The contest runs through March 21; voting will take place from March 29–April 18, with the winning images announced on May 3.
The Georgia Public Library Service helps states tell their stories of impact with targeted tools and training, plus a dash of cash—winning it LJ's 2020 Marketer of the Year Award.
When the COVID-19 pandemic forced Broward County Library, FL, to close its branches to the public, it immediately surveyed patron needs and created a targeted, data-driven marketing campaign to inform customers about electronic resources, online programs, and other content the library was offering. Los Angeles Public Library created new cardholders with its Art Card, designed by Gajin Fujita, an established graffiti artist. These very different campaigns, aimed directly at patron needs and preferences, earned the two libraries Honorable Mention for LJ's 2020 Marketer of the Year Award.
It is important for library leaders to realize that every other local organization or unit of government who responded to the COVID disaster with compassion, engagement, and their best efforts also has a great story to tell. During times of austerity, the narratives that matter are about direct and measurable outcomes for people who used your service, visited your program, accessed your collections, or interacted with your staff.
Libraries can and should continue to apply creative problem-solving to mitigate the worst impacts of this pandemic on staff and users. There is a limit to what even the most nimble, inventive, and dedicated libraries—or even consortia or associations—can fix. But that doesn’t mean there is nothing we can do. We need to think bigger and to throw the collective power of our profession toward advocacy for large-scale solutions.
In summer 2016, four librarians—Jessica Anne Bratt, Amita Lonial, Sarah Lawton, and Amy Sonnie—created Libraries 4 Black Lives (L4BL), an online space for libraries to support the Movement for Black Lives and develop a support community for advocates doing racial justice work in libraries. While L4BL is no longer active, Bratt, youth services manager at the Grand Rapids Public Library, MI, has continued her advocacy and social justice work. LJ recently caught up with her to find out more about what she’s been doing.
Whether lobbying legislators for funding libraries or a foundation for new shelving, public library leaders, communications staff, and even frontline workers need to be efficient and nimble when articulating their impacts to outside stakeholders. Crucially, they need to approach the question from the vantage of how the library’s outcomes align with that particular stakeholder’s mission.
Christian Zabriskie and Lauren Comito have partnered to make Urban Librarians Unite a powerful grassroots organization, while serving as a model for how teamwork can get things done—earning them the shared title of LJ's 2020 Librarian of the Year.
Dated October 15, ALA’s report to Congress summarizes challenges facing the library field with regard to ebooks, streaming content, the pricing of digital academic journal subscriptions, anti-competitive behavior in digital textbook publishing, and the publishing industry’s capture and use of student data.
Following years of declining investment, the United Kingdom’s public libraries will receive a significant boost, with over £125 million ($160,466,000) in new funding for regional museums and libraries throughout the country.
To pass an essential funding measure, Palatine Public Library District’s marketing team made the case with transparency, community feedback, and streamlined messaging—earning it LJ's 2019 Marketer of the Year Award.
When the St. Paul Public Library, MN, went fine-free, the marketing and communication team's successful campaign to get the word out helped earn it an Honorable Mention for LJ's 2019 Marketer of the Year Award.
While many view natural disasters as levelers—events that do not differentiate based on ethnicity or economic status—this is not the case. Low-income citizens are often hit harder by extreme weather events, due to everything from poorly constructed or aging housing to housing located closer to flood plains.
There is no such thing as a totally independent library board when the library’s funding stream is controlled by another entity. Libraries will never achieve consistently satisfactory funding levels as long as they are one of many agencies governed and/or solely funded by a larger political unit. When public libraries compete for funds with police, fire, sewers, schools, planning, and assessor’s offices, they lose. The tremendous cuts and closings weathered by public libraries in the UK over the past decade provide a cautionary tale.
The White House released President Trump’s preliminary FY20 budget proposal on Monday, March 11. As with the administration’s proposed FY18 and FY19 budgets, it calls for major cuts to domestic federal spending, and proposes the elimination of a number of non-military agencies, including the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).
On December 19, the House of Representatives passed the Museum and Library Services Act (MLSA) by a margin of 331–28, and it was signed into law on December 31. The bill, also known as S. 3530, reauthorizes the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) through 2025.
Voters turned out at the polls in record numbers on Tuesday, November 6, for the 2018 midterm elections. But strong voter turnout did not necessarily drive support for libraries at the voting booth.
It’s no secret that scholarly publishing is overwhelmingly white; 83 percent, according to the Workplace Equity Project’s (WEP) recent survey. Nor that there is a dearth of women at the top—and that there is a very real gender pay gap.
It’s a fact. American voters have become less enthusiastic, less engaged, and less united in their support for libraries over the past decade. That’s what From Awareness to Funding, Voter Perceptions and Support of Public Libraries 2018, a study by the American Library Association, Public Library Association, and OCLC, tells us.
Legislation to be put forward in January, 2019 proposes a $50 million permanent state fund to provide some $50,000 per year for more than 40 rural community libraries across New Mexico.
A newly released American Library Association (ALA) report marks the 10th anniversary of the American Dream Literacy Initiative and celebrates the many ways that participating public libraries have transformed lives.
Social media platforms serve as a virtual complaint window for angry consumers. Higher ed is no different when community members share concerns and voice anger in online public spaces. Academic librarians need to know how to handle these situations.
The State Library of Ohio has launched Libraries by the Numbers (LBTN), a web-based data visualization tool that enables users to create custom infographics about individual library systems using data drawn from their Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Public Library Surveys.
Last week, the Library Freedom Institute launched a program designed to help librarians become advocates for online privacy, created by the Library Freedom Project in partnership with New York University.
Update: A local citizens' group, Keep a Library in Watchung, has filed a lawsuit in Somerset County Superior Court against the Borough Council, seeking to overturn its decision to close the library. The suit alleges that the council's actions violate the New Jersey State Constitution of 1947 as well as the U.S. Constitution, the Open Public Meetings Act, the New Jersey Civil Rights Act, and New Jersey’s Local Housing and Redevelopment Act.
If you haven’t yet read From Awareness to Funding: Voter Perceptions and Support of Public Libraries in 2018, please put it on the top of your to-do list. Released in March by the Public Library Association (PLA) and the American Library Association Office for Library Advocacy, in partnership with OCLC, it updates the findings of the initial Awareness to Funding report done in 2008 with startling insights into how voters connect to libraries or—more concerning—increasingly don’t.
The 2018 “From Awareness to Funding” study should inspire deep reflection within the library community about how we have been doing public outreach, voter engagement, and everyday advocacy over this past decade.
The U.S. Senate has voted to keep net neutrality protections in place, using the powers of the Congressional Review Act to block the Federal Communications Commission’s December 14 overturn of the 2015 Open Internet Order.
For many attending the Public Library Association (PLA) 2018 conference in Philadelphia, the biggest challenge was simply getting there, thanks to an early spring Nor’easter that dumped snow from Washington, DC to New England on Wednesday, March 21. Just under 6,000 public library professionals and supporters registered to attend in person, with 1,821 exhibitors signed up as well.
UPDATE: 3/26/18: On Friday, March 23, President Trump signed a $1.3 trillion spending bill for FY18—after first threatening to veto it in an early-morning tweet. The bill will, among other provisions, keep the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and other government-funded culture and education agencies afloat through September.
Jeanne Marie Ryan has some advice for anyone who wants to get anything big done: “It pays to be persistent—and keep smiling as you go back to people.” That approach served her well as the chief strategist for and coordinator of the New Jersey Library Construction Bond Act. “She’s the Godmother of our first-ever library bond act,” says nominator Chris Carbone, director of the South Brunswick Public Library, NJ.
Librarianship was a natural fit for Margo Gustina, who has always loved connecting people with what they need but disliked the hard sell of bookstores or the bureaucracy of social work. Her first encounters with small libraries in rural western New York shaped her view of what good service should look like. She met directors with small staffs, tiny budgets, few open hours, and minimal digital resources who still brought their communities together with rich programming—not defined by their limitations, she says, but by their unique talents “and ability to translate those into strengthening the social connective tissue.”
A full 90 percent of all library referenda tracked by political action committee EveryLibrary and LJ passed in 2017. It’s worth taking a moment to reflect on the astounding support that number represents as it encompasses results in both blue and red states, cities large and small.
The past two years have seen more than 100 U.S. libraries place budget referenda on their local ballots; LJ tracked 54 wins out of 79 measures in 2016 and 31 wins out of 36 in 2017. LJ reached out to several libraries that succeeded with their initiatives in the past decade to find out how they did it.
The FY19 budget request released on February 12 by the Trump administration calls for the defunding of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), as well as a number of other programs relevant to libraries, just as it did last year.
The 2018 American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter meeting returned to Denver for the fourth time since 1982, offering attendees a range of programming from high-name-recognition speakers to a controversial President’s Program to a lively assortment of forward-looking symposia sponsored by the Center for the Future of Libraries.
Library Legislative Day in Kentucky on February 15 will give directors and advocates their first real chance to push back against Gov. Matt Bevin’s recent FY18–20 budget proposal, which seeks to eliminate every penny of the $2.5 million currently earmarked for direct state aid to libraries.
On January 31 the Aspen Institute Dialogue on Public Libraries (DPL) released “Libraries: Building Community Resilience in Colorado.” The report presents the findings of The Aspen Institute Colorado Dialogue on Public Libraries, a meeting of community stakeholders and library leaders held on May 25, 2017, and builds on DPL’s work examining the evolving roles of public libraries and developing models to drive discussions between libraries and their communities.
Sterling Heights Public Library, MI, has been offering BrainHQ, an online suite of gamified brain training exercises available to libraries through Demco’s partnership with Posit Science, as a component of a yearlong community initiative called “Exercise Your Brain!”
The Museum and Library Services Act of 2017 was introduced in the Senate on December 21 by Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI), along with Susan Collins (R-ME), Thad Cochran (R-MS), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK). The bipartisan bill, S. 2271, reauthorizes the core programs administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS): the Museum Services Act and the Library Services Technology Act (LSTA), which provides more than $183 million in funding through the Grants to States program; National Leadership Grants for Libraries; the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program; and Native American Library Services. The agency has been a source of support for public, academic, research, special, and tribal libraries, as well as some 35,000 museums.
We spend a lot of time as the year turns reflecting and anticipating what’s to come. This year, such reflection is intensified by a seemingly relentless assault on basic rights in a polarized political climate. This calls on us to fight for what our communities need as never before.
If you ask Lance Werner, executive director of the Kent District Library, MI, and LJ's 2017 Librarian of the Year, what makes him a strong leader, an effective legislative advocate, and a champion of access for his patrons, his answer is simple: it’s all about forming relationships.
The 2017 EveryLibrary Artist In Residence, Kevin Moore, is an editorial cartoonist and has been a reference librarian at Portland Community College, OR, since 2007. Moore was invited to create a series of weekly editorial cartoons focusing on library-related issues from September 4 through November 7; the cartoons are available for library supporters to use, copyright-free, in their advocacy work.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) today passed the “Restoring Internet Freedom Order” (RIFO), overturning the 2015 Open Internet Order, a regulatory framework established during the Obama administration that gave the FCC the power to enforce “net neutrality,” defining broadband Internet as a utility similar to electricity or water, and requiring Internet Service Providers (ISPs), such as Comcast, Verizon, and AT&T, to treat all data traffic on the Internet equally.
As the preliminary results from the November 7 elections emerged, the news from library ballots across the country was overwhelmingly positive. Of 36 library measures tracked by LJ and EveryLibrary, a national nonprofit political action committee for libraries, 27 passed, three failed, and six were too early to call at press time.
Marking its fifth anniversary on September 5, EveryLibrary, a nonprofit political action committee dedicated to building voter support for libraries, announced its One Million Americans For Libraries Campaign.
On October 3 the American Library Association (ALA) launched the ALA Policy Corps, an initiative that will bring together a core group of library practitioners from across the field and help them develop a deep expertise in public policy issues.
This fall New York University (NYU), in partnership with the Library Freedom Project, will be seeking applicants for the Library Freedom Institute (LFI), a new program that will train 40 geographically dispersed librarians as “Privacy Advocates.”
When President Donald Trump released his preliminary budget proposal for FY18 in March, revealing major cuts to government spending that would have eliminated support for the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the library community took the threat as a call to arms. The dynamic response paid off on September 14, when the full House of Representatives voted to approve a spending package, H.R. 3354, that would preserve federal funding for IMLS at FY17 levels, as well as all funding for its programs under the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) and the Department of Education’s Innovative Approaches to Literacy (IAL) Program.
In the second quarter of 2017, Facebook grew to more than two billion monthly active users, including 236 million in the United States and Canada—two-thirds of the combined population of those countries. According to a recent report in Forbes, Twitter’s growth has been slowing somewhat, but the number of average monthly active users on the platform grew five percent year-over-year to 328 million worldwide in Q217. According to a recent report in TechCrunch, Instagram has doubled its user base during the past two years, reaching 700 million monthly active users this spring. Social media is where people are online, so libraries need to be there, too.
U.S. libraries battle unprecedented challenges to federal support; you can help—and if you don't have a copy yet, you can download and print the PDF of our poster, sponsored by Gale Cengage, highlighting services that libraries stand to lose without federal funding. These services were drawn from states' 2013–17 plans for Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds granted by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Read it, post it in your library or around your community, and start a conversation.
Do your stakeholders know what your library does for them? In the United States, libraries are under unprecedented threat, and the response from advocates has been tremendous. As the 2018 federal budget, with its dark promise to shut down the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) as well as other key federal bodies, makes its way through the House and Senate, advocates have been moving the needle, with waves of activity intended to compel the right decision-makers at the right time.
With FY17 and FY18 and presidential and congressional budgets all jumbled together in the news cycle, it can be tough to keep track of what’s still on the table and when it needs attention. At right is a time line of what to expect in the fight for federal funding for libraries. While it’s accurate as of press time, the situation has been changing rapidly, so sign up for the American Library Association’s Washington Office District Dispatch e-newsletter to get the most recent updates.
Since its founding in 2012, EveryLibrary, the only political action committee (PAC) for libraries, has mainly focused on helping libraries win elections for local funding levies, building and operating referenda, and independent taxing districts—the bread and butter of American library support at the local level. But the threat to national funding demanded a different approach.
On May 17, some 25 publishers, technology vendors, trade associations, and other businesses serving the library market announced the formation of the Corporate Committee for Library Investment (CCLI) to advocate for federal library funding.
On July 13, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies voted to recommend level funding in FY18 for IMLS, likely including $183 million for the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) and $27 million for the Innovative Approaches to Literacy program. The full Appropriations Committee markup and vote took place on July 19; the budget passed 28–22. While the vote was an important step toward securing federal library funding going forward, the fight is not over, says ALA president Jim Neal.
At ALA’s recent annual conference, ALA’s Washington Office (WO) reported to Council that the 2017 National Legislative Day was the biggest ever. But if you missed it, fear not—WO and ALA as a whole also have many tips for how local librarians on the front lines can get involved with the fight for federal funding from their hometown without traveling to DC. For more tools and tips, see ALA’s Fight for Libraries! Campaign Tools.
As executive director of United for Libraries (UFL), the American Library Association (ALA) division that supports library trustees, advocates, friends, and foundations, Sally Gardner Reed has been the organization’s driving force since 2002. Reed will be retiring at the end of July, having seen the organization grow and change greatly over the past 15 years.
Being able to easily get their hands on materials needed for job hunting, financial or legal research, or college applications, whether or not their local branch has them, saves library patrons in Connecticut money and time. In many cases, it may be their only option.
LYRASIS last month named the first recipients of its $100,000 LYRASIS Leadership Circle’s Catalyst Fund, which was created to support new ideas and projects by LYRASIS members.
The majority of the offerings at the American Library Association (ALA) Annual Conference in Chicago focused on libraries and library-related content based in the United States and Canada. A notable exception was the International Relations Round Table (IRRT) Chair's Program, “Acting for Humanity: The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Libraries,” which took a look at how libraries both domestic and abroad are working to address the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) developed by the United Nations (UN) Development Programme.
Salesmanship is rarely considered the work of academic librarians. Librarians responsible for outreach and building connections with students and faculty might benefit from embracing the idea they have something worth offering and then selling it.
Looking beyond the headlines to examine public policy issues that affect the American Library Association (ALA), panelists at the ALA Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) session “Report from the Swamp: Policy Developments from Washington” discussed the need for ongoing vigilance—and also promising avenues for advocacy.
United for Libraries (UFL), the division of the American Library Association that supports library trustees, Friends, and foundations, recently filled two major leadership positions. Skip Dye, VP of library marketing and digital sales at big five publisher Penguin Random House, was elected 2018–19 UFL president, and will serve as president-elect during 2017–18. Beth Nawalinski, who has served as UFL deputy executive director since 2015 and has led the division’s revenue-producing programs, internal and external communications, and membership retention and growth, will step in as executive director July 31 to succeed retiring ED Sally Reed.
Library staff are the folks who love to talk about books. The more people we reach and can inspire, the happier we are. We also love to talk about libraries and their place in our society and share ideas about how to make libraries a better place for our users.
On June 5, Kathi Kromer stepped into the role of associate executive director of the American Library Association (ALA)’s Washington Office, succeeding Emily Sheketoff, who led the Washington Office for more than 17 years and retired on May 15.
In what New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called the earliest budget agreement since 1992, on June 6 New York City Council voted to adopt the city’s FY18 budget, which will include $110 million for capital projects in libraries across the city, more than doubling capital library funding.
Aiming to raise awareness and maintain momentum for preservation efforts focused on publicly administered data, the inaugural "Endangered Data Week" kicked off on April 17 and ultimately featured more than 50 presentations, panels, and projects in the U.S., Spain, and Australia.
UPDATED:The 2017 National Medal recipient libraries, announced on May 15, are: Cedar Rapids Public Library, IA Long Beach Public Library, CA Richland Library, Columbia, SC University of Minnesota Libraries, Minneapolis Waterville Public Library, ME
Voting for the American Library Association (ALA) 2018–19 presidential election closed on April 5, with Loida García-Febo winning the role of president-elect. A total of 9,123 ballots were cast among the candidates— García-Febo, Terri Grief, and Scott Walter—significantly down from last year’s 10,230.
At the March for Science on Earth Day, April 22, and the Climate March held the following week, thousands of participants took to the streets in cities around the world, voicing their support for policies and practices based on scientific principles, government funding of research, and open dissemination of the resulting data. In those crowds, librarians, archivists, and other information professionals were well-represented.
The Urban Librarians Unite (ULU) conference in Brooklyn last month clarified the need for library advocates to engage in new ways, expand the network of library support, and focus on tactics for further establishing libraries’ value in our disrupted culture. Outcry over the destruction of so many publicly funded cultural institutions is almost deafening. We must find ways to make our voices resonate.
Overnight we went from a president who declared climate change as the single greatest threat to future generations to a president, and Senate, who appointed a climate change denier to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
November's presidential election led to a surprising result for many. Even among those who voted for the current president-elect, a lot of people did not actually expect him to prevail over a former senator and secretary of state. And almost immediately, everyone from regular people to media pundits were chiming in on what the election will mean for the country.
The theme of the Urban Librarians Unite (ULU) 2017 Conference, held at Brooklyn Public Library’s Central Library on April 7, was Dangerous Librarianship—an appropriate designation for a librarians challenging the status quo. Some 186 librarians from the New York metro area and beyond—including attendees from Massachusetts, Arizona, and California—gathered to share and learn about advocacy, social justice, alternative service models, privacy, leadership, and more.
Facebook Live is video streamed over Facebook and archived there afterwards. All libraries need to get started is a smartphone/tablet and the Facebook app, or a webcam attached to a computer running the Google Chrome browser.
