David Chanen, Star Tribune; Chad Helton, a pioneering black librarian, will be new head of Hennepin County Library
"As a black kid growing up in the South, Chad Helton rarely used the library because he never felt he belonged in one.
Few patrons looked like him, and the programs at the Mount Airy, N.C., library didn’t reflect his community. Little did he know then that a job delivering books in a golf cart after he dropped out of college would lead to a pioneering career as a library administrator.
Helton, the first black top administrator at several college libraries and the Los Angeles library system, was named director of the Hennepin County Library system last week. He will face the challenge of reopening libraries that have been shut down by COVID-19 and also working with communities wounded by the police-involved death of George Floyd.
“The pandemic just highlighted the important role that libraries play in people’s lives,” said Helton, 42. “This is something we’ve never experienced. It certainly will be interesting.”...
Helton had been a college dropout for eight years, working three jobs at a time and relying on friends for a place to live, when he got on the library track. While delivering books at the University of North Carolina, he ran into a former professor and mentor who stressed how working in a library can change your life.
Helton returned to UNC, earning a bachelor’s degree in African-American Studies and then master’s degrees in library and information studies and public administration."
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Saturday, May 30, 2020
Eric Cervini on Celebrating 50 Years of LGBTQ Pride; Library of Congress, May 28, 2020
[Podcast] Library of Congress; Eric Cervini on Celebrating 50 Years of LGBTQ Pride
"In honor of LGBTQ Pride month (June) and the 50th anniversary of Pride celebrations, Eric Cervini discusses his book "The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America," with Roswell Encina, Library of Congress chief communications officer."
"In honor of LGBTQ Pride month (June) and the 50th anniversary of Pride celebrations, Eric Cervini discusses his book "The Deviant's War: The Homosexual vs. the United States of America," with Roswell Encina, Library of Congress chief communications officer."
Sunday, May 10, 2020
Movers & Shakers: The People Shaping the Future of Libraries; Library Journal, May 2020
Francine Fialkoff, Project Manager and Cofounder, LJ Movers and Shakers, Library Journal; Movers and Shakers: The People Shaping the Future of Libraries
"Welcome to LJ’s 2020 Movers and Shakers
"Welcome to LJ’s 2020 Movers and Shakers
It is my great pleasure to congratulate and welcome the 46 individuals named 2020 Movers and Shakers. They join a distinguished group that is now nearly 1,000 strong. Reading any of these profiles will surely bring a little light into our COVID-19–quarantined days.
The 2020 Movers, like so many librarians and library workers, are passionate about what they do. They’re transforming their communities, schools, and colleges and universities in myriad ways. They’re changing education for children and adults, with innovative approaches to literacy, learning, and teaching. They’re lowering barriers to access for English language learners and those who aren’t connected to the internet—and creating opportunities. They’re empowering voters. They’re redefining archives to include groups that have been marginalized, erased, or misrepresented. They’re devising strategies to make libraries, and our society, more inclusive for everyone.
With most schools, colleges and universities, and public libraries closed due to COVID-19, they’re delivering formerly inperson services virtually and expanding online services on the fly, like so many reading this. For more on what librarians are doing now and insights on what the “new normal” must include, see Meredith Schwartz’s editorial, “Don’t Settle for Normal.”"
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
To Protect Black Americans from the Worst Impacts of COVID-19, Release Comprehensive Racial Data; Scientific American, April 24, 2020
Joia Crear-Perry, Michael McAfee , Scientific American; To Protect Black Americans from the Worst Impacts of COVID-19, Release Comprehensive Racial Data
Properly reported information is crucial for black communities to recover from this crisis and transcend a history of exclusion
"History shows that when crises strike, Black Americans often experience the worst consequences. We mustn’t continue allowing this to happen. Our organizations—the National Birth Equity Collaborative and PolicyLink—recently joined a coalition called WeMustCount demanding the data. Once we have that data, we’re calling on policymakers to take immediate action to help.
The data on Black Americans and COVID-19 are shocking but not unexpected. Engrained racist structures prevent them from fully accessing health care, education, employment and more—all of which increases susceptibility to COVID-19 and its most devastating health consequences.
These issues trace back far before the current pandemic. It was baked into the nation’s founding and carries forward today. Black Americans have always suffered disproportionately from national crises...
Buried behind all of this is an underlying fear: Releasing the information would mean bringing attention to a problem that policy makers could otherwise easily ignore
Properly reported information is crucial for black communities to recover from this crisis and transcend a history of exclusion
"History shows that when crises strike, Black Americans often experience the worst consequences. We mustn’t continue allowing this to happen. Our organizations—the National Birth Equity Collaborative and PolicyLink—recently joined a coalition called WeMustCount demanding the data. Once we have that data, we’re calling on policymakers to take immediate action to help.
The data on Black Americans and COVID-19 are shocking but not unexpected. Engrained racist structures prevent them from fully accessing health care, education, employment and more—all of which increases susceptibility to COVID-19 and its most devastating health consequences.
These issues trace back far before the current pandemic. It was baked into the nation’s founding and carries forward today. Black Americans have always suffered disproportionately from national crises...
Buried behind all of this is an underlying fear: Releasing the information would mean bringing attention to a problem that policy makers could otherwise easily ignore
Monday, May 4, 2020
Leaders Are Crying on the Job. Maybe That’s a Good Thing.; The New York Times, May 3, 2020
, The New York Times; Leaders Are Crying on the Job. Maybe That’s a Good Thing.
"“The days when a politician cried and it was over for them — that’s over, ” [Pam Sherman, a leadership coach based in Rochester, N.Y.] said. “Things like empathy, vulnerability, emotional connectedness — these are the things that define today’s leaders.”
In other words: the leadership traits that, traditionally, have been associated with women."
"“The days when a politician cried and it was over for them — that’s over, ” [Pam Sherman, a leadership coach based in Rochester, N.Y.] said. “Things like empathy, vulnerability, emotional connectedness — these are the things that define today’s leaders.”
In other words: the leadership traits that, traditionally, have been associated with women."
Has COVID-19 changed the face of tech ethics forever?; IDG, April 23, 2020
Pat Martlew, IDG; Has COVID-19 changed the face of tech ethics forever?
"So, are the more heavy-handed approaches worth implementing if it leads to lives being saved? Prominent technologist and tech ethics expert Anne Currie says that while she wouldn't necessarily advocate for China's approach, there is a degree to which ethical considerations must be eased if we are to save a considerable number of lives.
"Tech ethics in the good times and tech ethics in the bad times are extremely different. When you've got hundreds of thousands of lives on the line, we all do occasionally need to suspend some of our privileges. That is just the reality of the situation," she says
"Right now, we are in a battle. We're in a battle with an implacable other. We're not battling with a competitor at work and we're not battling with another country, as difficult as that may be. We are battling with a virus that doesn't care at all about us. It doesn't care about fairness, diversity, privacy, or any of the good things that we generally value. It will just kill us if we don't act and that has changed where our priorities lie, which is the right thing to happen."
"So, are the more heavy-handed approaches worth implementing if it leads to lives being saved? Prominent technologist and tech ethics expert Anne Currie says that while she wouldn't necessarily advocate for China's approach, there is a degree to which ethical considerations must be eased if we are to save a considerable number of lives.
"Tech ethics in the good times and tech ethics in the bad times are extremely different. When you've got hundreds of thousands of lives on the line, we all do occasionally need to suspend some of our privileges. That is just the reality of the situation," she says
"Right now, we are in a battle. We're in a battle with an implacable other. We're not battling with a competitor at work and we're not battling with another country, as difficult as that may be. We are battling with a virus that doesn't care at all about us. It doesn't care about fairness, diversity, privacy, or any of the good things that we generally value. It will just kill us if we don't act and that has changed where our priorities lie, which is the right thing to happen."
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