Lowrider Librarian

Please join us on Google Hangouts for a discussion between Yago, Autumn, Max and yourselves! Please follow the URL below on Sunday, Sept. 8th from 6-7 pm PST.

For DEI: Nobody! Holding Cultural Petting Zoos is Easier than Creating Equitable Institutional Structures.  Many institutions are stuck in a loop of cultural events that consist of food tasting and traditional dress modeling, etc...As if the mere exposure to such multicultural aspects would cure racism overnight.  Of course, these events do have a place, but they can't be relied upon to create progress in a historically white institution. I've been thinking about this for a long time and it really comes down to accountability and value. Claiming Equity, Diversity and Inclusion as a part of a traditionally white educational institution or organization is a benefit most schools have taken.  Schools have the benefits of doing something without actually having to make any real changes as there is literally no accountability, nor credibility. The above claim is damaging to people of color  and other oppressed groups because it puts out the issue, but doesn't re...

Problems in multicultural_collection_development from Max Macias: Info, Tech and Leadership This is a presentation I did in library school back in 2007.

Yes, that is a Grumpy T-shirt.   Here is a link to an short interview I did for a multicultural librarian graduate course: https://goo.gl/r93L4g These are the questions I covered:   Questions for 825 Interviews   1. Will you please introduce yourself to the class and briefly describe your current library and position as well as the path that led you to librarianship?   2. In this course, we are exploring how libraries can best meet “the recreational, cultural, informational, and educational needs of African American, Asian American, Latina/o, Native American, and bi/multiracial children, young adults, and adults.” In what ways does your racial/ethnic identity enable you to meet these needs in your library?   3. As a patron in libraries throughout your life, you have probably had both positive and negative experiences related to access and collections. How have these experiences shaped your work as a professiona...

I hope your Spring is springing. I wanted to ask you all to consider volunteering to be on your state's LSTA Grant advisory boards. I am currently the chair of the Oregon LSTA Advisory council. My place on the council give me a voice that I can use to represent others who are not at the table. There have been many times already where I was able to make an argument that would have not been made (concerning Latino issues) if I had not been there. If we take our places on these and other committees that have a say in where money goes, then more Latino programming may get funded. At the very least, we can represent where we are not represented already. We can create change, we can lead from anywhere we are and we can help one another be strong.