Mini con-presentation-apr20
- 1. Exploring Anti-racism in School Libraries: Contributions and Gaps Miriam Larson University of Illinoisat Urbana-Champaign larson40@illinois.edu April 20, 2013 ISLMA Mini-Conference, Bloomingdale
- 2. What interests you about the topic? Why did you come? Introductions
- 3. To recommend resources that you can use for your own learning, report-writing or for sharing To send you away with new ideas for how to practice racially conscious librarianship Goalsfor thisSession
- 4. If we aim to be compassionate school librarians and advance a world in which all people have equal opportunity regardless of race, culture, class, religion, etc. . . . What scholarship exists to prepare us and to guide our practice? Guidancefrom Scholarship
- 5. Cultural competence as defined by Patricia Montiel-Overall is . . . the ability to recognize the significance of culture in one’s own life and in the lives of others; and to come to know and respect diverse cultural backgrounds and characteristics through interaction with individuals from diverse linguistic, cultural, and socioeconomic groups; and to fully integrate the culture of diverse groups into services work, and institutions in order to enhance the lives of both those being served by the library profession and those engaged in service. (from Cultural Competence: A Conceptual Framework for Library and Information Science Professionals) Domains: 1. Cultural self-knowledge 2. Interpersonal appreciation - an “ethic of care” 3. Environment - language, space, policies, etc. Buzzword: Cultural Competence
- 6. Referring to multiculturalism, Lorna Peterson writes . . . “Differences in culture instead of historical treatment become the focus, and equity issues are obscured by a "me too" claim in victim status in which everyone's differences are made equal.” (Library Journal, 1995) Why it’snot enough . . .
- 7. Racism Then and Now INCARCERATION In major cities wracked by the drug war, as many as 80 percent of young African American men now have criminal records. The incarceration rate for Latino drug offenders in 2000 was more than twenty-two times their rate of incarceration in 1983. In the same time span rates of incarceration for white drug offenders have also increased, but they are only eight times what they were in 1983 But studies show that people of all colors use and sell illegal drugs at remarkably similar rates. From Michelle Alexander’s book The New Jim Crow
- 8. Although the majority of illegal drug users and dealers nationwide are white, three-fourths of all people imprisoned for drug offenses have been black or Latino. As of September 2009, only 7.9% of federal prisoners were convicted of violent crimes. The U.S. incarceration rate is six to ten times greater than the rate in other industrialized nations. From The New Jim Crow Racism Then and Now (cont)
- 9. QuickTime™ and a TIFF (LZW) decompressor are needed to see this picture. If librariespromotedemocracy . . . . . . then racism isour concern.
- 10. Librarians’ Contributions Advocating for diverse books Providing student-centered learning spaces “Nobody pushed me to make a fool of myself, to let everybody know I couldn’t yet handle all those books. I hung around here with my friends, fooled with all the computers, talked a lot, and found out that I wanted to know more” - Hispanic Student to racially equitable education QuickTime™ and a TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor are needed to see this picture. Other specific benefits? Ross Todd and Carol Kulthau’s study of school libraries in Ohio found that students perceptions of how the library helped them with reading scored higher for African Americans than whites
- 11. Addressing Gaps Library-specific examples of racism • Underrepresentation of books by and about people of color 1. Need for professional recruitment and retention of librarians of color School-wide examples of racism 1. Achievement gap: Locally and nationally, test scores for Latino and Black students are lower than scores for other racial groups. 2. Disproportional disciplinary actions for students of color contribute to a “school-to-prison” pipeline
- 12. *Data about books is from the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) and most accurately documents books in trade book format, as well as some series non-fiction titles. Population statistics are from the U.S. Census. African/ African Americans American Indians Asian Pacifics/Asian Pacific Americans Latinos 2012 Characters in Books 3.3% (119) 6% (22) 2.1% (76) 1.5% (54) 2012 Book Authors 1.8% (68) .1% (6) .2% (83) 1.6% (59) 2011 U.S. Population by Race 13.1% 1.2% 5% 16.7% Racial Representation in Children’sand YA Lit
- 13. • High Standards a) Cultural Competence c) Sociopolitical Consciousness Racially ConsciousLibrary Practice Education scholar Gloria Ladson-Billings proposes a framework that includes cultural competence called culturally relevant pedagogy “students must experience academic success” “students must develop and/or maintain cultural competence” “students must develop a critical consciousness through which they challenge the current status quo”
- 14. Scenario 1: Collection Development Helpful fact: Research indicates that books that reflect the same race and cultural background as the readers improve students’ motivation and success in learning to read. Scenario: Imagine you are a middle school librarian. When the “multicultural” box arrives from your book fair provider you find that almost all of the enclosed books are picture books and transitional series books. How do you explain this? What do you do?
- 15. Scenario 2: Instructional Collaboration Scenario: A white school librarian works at a predominantly white elementary school. An Asian American teacher is working with her class in the library. The librarian observes that a black student is repeatedly talking out. The librarian pulls the student out into the hallway and reprimands that student. How might race be significant in this scenario? How might the librarian deal with this differently? Do you have experience with variations on this scenario?
- 16. Scenario 3: Teaching for Sociopolitical Consciousness Scenario: “A group of African American youth, who attend a predominately white high school, are overheard complaining about their teachers' and administrators' perceived lack of support and cultural sensitivity. The library media specialist, in collaboration with several classroom teachers, recognizes this as an opportunity to explore the concept critical inquiry with students.” (Kumasi, 2007) What kinds of critical inquiry projects might conducted in the library? What are benefits to hosting such a project in the library? What are constraints?
- 17. Discussion: Culturally Relevant Library Practice What else do I need to know? Teaching/Librarianship Cultural differences/Racial inequity Adult-level knowledge Research Ideas for different librarian roles? Teacher Information Specialist Instructional Partner Program Administrator Leader Space Design Community Programs
- 19. “Today it is perfectly legal to discriminate against criminals in nearly all the ways that it was once legal to discriminate against African Americans” (2). “Like Jim Crow, mass incarceration marginalizes large segments of the African American community, segregates them physically (in prisons, jails, and ghettos), and then authorizes discrimination against them in voting, employment, housing, education, public benefits, and jury service” (17) And in an era of colorblindness, discriminating against criminals sidesteps any need to name race or use it as a justification for oppression. Systematic Disenfranchisement
Editor's Notes
- #13: Textbooks have changed considerably Research on transitional books shows more proportional relationship