Black Caucus of ALA Denounces ALA’s Decision to Hold 2016 Annual Conference in Orlando, Fla.

Black Caucus of ALA Denounces ALA’s Decision to Hold 2016 Annual Conference in Orlando, Fla. 

For immediate release: March 10, 2014

Media Contact: Jason Alston, jasonalston@gmail.com

The Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA), condemns the American Library Association’s (ALA) decision to continue with plans to hold the ALA 2016 annual conference in Orlando, Fla. in the wake of the George Zimmerman verdict and that state’s refusal to revise or repeal “Stand Your Ground” laws, which were included in jury instructions in Zimmerman’s trial for second degree murder for fatally shooting unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla. in 2012.
BCALA believes that “Stand Your Ground” laws enable a “shoot first, ask questions later” mentality against African-American men perceived without merit to be threats or assumed without evidence to be engaged in criminal behavior. Kenneth Nunn, a professor at the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law, wrote in the New York Times in 2012 that, “African-Americans, black males in particular, have been constructed in popular culture as violence-prone and dangerous,” and that this construct produces a fear in Americans that deadly force against such people is consequently reasonable in general.

BCALA therefore contends that Florida law should require more than perception of a threat before use of deadly force is deemed justifiable. BCALA predicts “Stand Your Ground” will be used in future killings where racial bias played a factor in the actions of the accused. Months after the Zimmerman verdict, another travesty of justice occurred when a Florida jury failed to convict Michael Dunn of murder for shooting into a car and killing 17-year-old Jordan Davis. Dunn said he fired because he felt threatened by Davis and other Black teens in a car Davis was riding in, but the unarmed Davis had not exited his vehicle or physically confronted Dunn. Dunn was convicted only for attempted murder after he continued firing at the vehicle as the teenagers attempted to flee.  
BCALA believes that ALA, which claims various commitments to diversity and tolerance, should have begun plans to find a new venue for ALA 2016 following the July 2013 acquittal of George Zimmerman. BCALA must question ALA’s true commitment to diversity and racial tolerance when ALA, North America’s largest and strongest library association, still plans to hold its largest and most financially lucrative function in a state that has become Ground Zero in initiating weapons laws, as well as voting policies, that potentially put the rights and safety of African-Americans at risk. ALA annual conferences are generally well-documented and publicized, and BCALA fears that librarians, 20,000 strong, conducting business and spending money in Orlando will negate any claim that librarians have to being advocates of equality and social justice. 

BCALA, rather, is committed to creating, supporting and cheerleading initiatives that facilitate success in young Black males. The organization is particularly encouraged by President Barack Obama’s recent unveiling of the “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative, which the president hopes will, “(I)mprove significantly the expected life outcomes for boys and young men of color (including African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans) and their contributions to U.S. prosperity.” An initiative to support Black male success coming from national leadership will hopefully catch on with those who otherwise wouldn’t care or would see these youths as a threat.
BCALA was formally established in 1970 and remains the forefront networking and professional development vehicle for African-American librarians. An independent non-profit organization, BCALA sponsors scholarships and travel assistance, produces a quarterly publication and holds a biennial conference. BCALA serves in an advisory role to the American Library Association and collaborates with other ethnic affiliate organizations on diversity initiatives in libraries. More information about BCALA is available at www.bcala.org.

Powerocks Super MagicStick Review Part Two

I've had the Super MagicStick since November and it has served me well.

From recharging my Iphone on a snow hike to recharging my Iphone on my nightstand, it is a great tool and I recommend it.

Small and portable, I can throw it in my backpack, or put in in a pocket.  I like the various colors they come in and the price is decent.

It charges my phone pretty fast and stores two full charges.  

If you are in the market for a charger for your phone--it has a USB and Micro USB plug--so it is can be used on many phone models.  

The price range is from 22.00 to about 30.00 depending on where you purchase the product.

Product Features

• Has a one-amp charge rate (same as home chargers)


• Depending on your phone's battery, you can get one-two full charges from one Magicstick charge


• Large capacity 2600mAh portable battery keeps your cell phone or smartphone powered while on the go


• Small and convenient for traveling


• Compatible with cell phones, smartphones, and media players


• Has one USB port with 5V / 1A output for rapid charging


• Recharge via the included Micro-USB charging cable


• Features a charge-level indicator


• Powers iPhone, Android phones, other smartphones, and many other devices


• Environmentally friendly (ROHS compliant)


• CE, UL, FCC approved

Check out Powerocks Super MagicStick!

Ten D2L Retention Strategies

Ten D2L Retention Strategies

By Max Macias 2/2014

1. Email the class their assignments for the week via D2L email every Monday to make sure everyone is kept abreast of where they are supposed to be and the time frames for the class.

2. Create a Google Calendar and share it with the class.  Either embedd it, or send it to your students via email.  Have all the class assignments on entered on the calendar and the due dates clearly stated.  

3. Embed your Google Class Calendar in your news feed with the D2L embed tool.  Tell your students they can click on events in the calendar and directly copy them to their own personal calendars.

4. Give clear feedback that lets the student know what they are doing well, and what they need to work on to get the outcomes for the class.   

5. Make comments on the student’s documents with the “insert comment” tool.  

6. Contact Students via Dropbox list, when dropbox assignments are late.  Simply check off the boxes next to the student names who have not turned in the assignment, then click “email” and you can BCC these students with the message that that particular assignment is late.

7. Listen to the students and work with them when it comes to due dates and turning in missing assignments.  We want the students to learn, not just to turn assignments in on time.  While a schedule is vital, so is human understanding and family life.  

8. Use your student evaluation feedback to help you improve retention.  Students will tell us much of what they need, either different time frames for assignments, or suggestions in content change can be helpful in retaining students.  

9. Use CPN* notification system to notify students who are falling behind, or who are doing well in the class.  This is an official notification and carries more weight than an email “reminder” from the instructor.

10. Use the CPN system repeatedly, giving both affirmations and reminders that work is due and that the student can still pass the class.
    
    
     *Course Progress Notification system

The Day We Fight Back

Pathways to Progress: Issues and Advances in Latino Librarianship Review by Max Macias

Pathways to Progress: Issues and Advances in Latino Librarianship Review

by Max Macias

Last fall I had the honor of being asked to review the much anticipated Pathways to Progress: Issues and Advances in Latino Librarianship; edited by John L. Ayala and Salvador Güereña.  This book is a collection of essays by Latino Librarian/Advocates on Latino Librarianship.  It is part of a series called Latinos and Libraries Series, published by Libraries Unlimited.  I do not have time to write about every essay in the book--there are 12 chapters and 17 pieces written by some of the leaders of the Latino Library Movement.  

Chapter one is by Dr. Sergio Chaparro and is entitled: Common Denominators in the Development of Latino Library Leadership.  This chapter was far too short and underdeveloped.  It was surfacy and generally vague without references to the diversity within the “Latino” label.  It was supposed to outline and discuss some ideas and methods to create and empower a new group of managers and library directors who can advocate for Latinos and Hispanics in librarianship and in LIS programs.  Dr. Chapparo is correct in his observations that more Latinos should be in library management/administration.  He is also correct that there must be more research on Latinos in libraries and Latinos in general. 

Collection Development: an Overview for the Spanish Speaking by Sara Martinez is the 2nd chapter.  This chapter is wonderful and akin to a mini-handbook on Spanish Language Collection Processes.  She even has tips on distribution contacts and how to outreach to the Spanish Speaking Community in general.  This is a solid chapter and is invaluable to anyone who is collecting or is about to begin to collect, or is even thinking about collecting Spanish Language Materials for their library. 

Public Library Services and Latino Children: Getting it right in the 21st Century by Oralia Garza de Cortés is the 3rd chapter in this wonderful book.  She begins the chapter with a history of Latino Librarianship in children’s services.  Oralia goes then analyzes and criticizes the Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library program.  She then talks about first languages in the home and how they relate to literacy.  Oralia next describes REFORMA’s place in the struggle to serve Latino Children in Spanish by describing various programs that REFORMA has developed by itself and in partnership with aspect of ALA. 

Oralia goes on to describe the explosive growth of the Latino population in the US and then gives us the wonderful gift of “Ten Principles for Providing Comprehensive Library Services to Latino Children and Families.”   Every principle she gives is powerful and would/will truly impact services in this vital area.  This is one of the stronger chapters in the anthology. 

Chapter 4:  Academic Libraries: Pathways to Transforming Teaching, Learning and Relationships in Chicano and Latino Studies by Luévano, etal. covers the “...best methods used to integrate information fluency skills into ethnic studies department curricula?”  One conclusion is that “Academic Librarians must become more involved in faculty and curriculum development.”  Librarians must spend more time creating learning materials for class and the library. This chapter is okay, but is more on the theoretical/academic side.  

Chapter 5:  Special Libraries and Collections:  Invisible as Night, Implacable as Wind” California and Multicultural Archives (CEMA): The First 20 Years by Erica Bennett is an excellent history of this organization.  Ms. Bennett surveys the history, demographic developments in the US, the importance of Latino/Hispanic archives in general and specifically CEMA.  She goes on to describe the place of CEMA in the 21st century and ends with an excellent chronology of CEMA. 

Chapter 6:  Special Collections: The Cuban Heritage Collection at the University of Miami Libraries by Mariá R. Estorino is a nice description of the collection, it’s importance and future as a major resource for Latino/Hispanic research.  Chapter 7 is a beautiful piece by the late and great tatiana de la tierra entitled Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Lesbian, Queer: Being there: Queer Latin@ Representation in the Library discusses the problems, and possible solutions of the lack of representation in libraries of Latino Queer Librarians, and the lack of representation in library collections as a result of the lack of Latino Queer Librarians and allies. 

Chapter 8 is Recruiting and Mentoring: Proactive Mentoring: Attracting Hispanic American Students into Information Studies by Alma C. Ortega and Marisol Ramos tries to answer the question of why efforts to recruit Hispanic students into Library Science has so far failed and what might be done about this with solid mentoring and recruitment.  This essay was almost the first time I had heard anyone else, besides myself, talk about the importance of recruiting non-Spanish Speaking Hispanic students into LIS.  Proactive recruiting and mentoring are major focuses of this chapter.  It ends with some illustrative case studies. 

Chapter 9 is Leadership in Libraries: Latino Leadership in Libraries by Luis Herrera discusses the history, present and future of Latino leadership in libraries in the US.  While this chapter offers some insight into the history of this topic, it offers little in practical and effective leadership implementation for Latinos in libraries.  I found this article trite, and full of “7 Habits of Highly Effective Leaders” types of advice.  While it offers some insight into how current Latino Library leaders see leadership--it doesn’t address the lack of change and current Latino librarian lack of impact in making libraries more welcoming to Latinos in the US. 

Chapter 10 is Digital Resource: Developing Chicano/a Latino/a Digital Resources by Alexander Hauschild addresses the dilemma of making digital resources that relate to Chicano/a or Latino/a history available widely.  This chapter mainly focuses on how to get the resources that exist linked up to one another and to outside sources for more availability. 

Chapter 11 is a collection of conference presentation the topics range from “A Personal Commitment to the Committee to Recruit Mexican American Librarians” by John L. Ayala to LGBT Archives by Yolanda Retter Vargas.  Chapter 12 discusses the role of library associations in relation to Latino librarianship--it ends with an historical overview of REFORMA. 

            In general, I would say that this book is well worth the price:  52.25.  This book has solid information and background for understanding the issues Latino Librarianship in the US face, the history of Latinos in LIS and potential paths to the future for Latinos and those who would serve this population in US libraries.  Kudos to John Ayala and Salvador Güereña for creating this practical and informative collection of essays!  My main criticism is the lack of radical ideas, or any real strength when it comes to confronting the racism and prejudice we (Latinos/Hispanics/Indigenous) face in US libraries.  We need an analysis of the impact of the Colonial Educational System on our knowledge--particularly when it comes to identity, culture and our heritage.  While all these essays gave practical steps to help Latinos in the current milieu, we need to have alternative futures that change or operate outside the current system--which is fundamentally, White supremacist, Patriarchal, Heterosexual, Classist and Misogynistic.  I look forward to seeing this change in analysis as a result of the practical advice given by the authors in this fine work.

Series: Latinos and Libraries Series Paperback: 243 pages Publisher: Libraries Unlimited (November 18, 2011) Language: English ISBN-10: 1591586445 ISBN-13: 978-1591586449 Product Dimensions: 0.6 x 7 x 10.2 inches

Max Macias

Silverton, Oregon

January, 2014

Powerocks Super MagicStick Review Part One

I received an email asking if I would review this product recently.  Many friends have shown me their portable charging systems and I have been thinking about getting one--the timing was perfect!

I received my charger within a couple of days and was stoked on how simple and small it is.  

I comes with a USB to mini USB which hooks up the charging unit to your PC, or whatever USB power source you will be using to charge the unit.  

And here it is hooked up to a laptop.

The red light indicates charging.  

Three easy steps:

1) Charge the unit.

2) Connect to your device.

Enjoy your extended battery use.

This device unit also comes with a handy carrying bag.

I will let you know how well it works after I get a chance to charge some devices with it.

Expect my opinion/s soon.

Instagram

Instagramatic!

 

I love Instagram and am in a state of constant inspiration from those I follow.  Advertising, nor those stupid PR people have not ruined it yet for me.

I am an insta-junkie at the moment. 

Have you found any interesting library related uses for Instagram?