The University of Cincinnati Libraries RESPECT (Racial Equity Support Programming to Educate the Community Team) has as its charge to use library resources to expand programming and resources that provide library users with the tools to understand systemic racism in order to begin dismantling it. Upcoming, RESPECT is sponsoring three events that are free and open to all to attend.
Continue readingTag Archives: diversity equity inclusion
Join us April 11 for “Protests, Boycotts, Lawsuits and Persistence: Reflections on Police Reform and Public Pressure in Cincinnati”
DETAILS: Thursday, April 11, 3:30pm, Walter C. Langsam Library FEC 540E – with remarks by Linda Newman, Iris Roley and Al Gerhardstein.
Cincinnati in 2000 – 2002 was alive with ideas for change and disagreement on how to make it happen. The presenters will discuss protests, boycotts and other activism that pressed for progressive goals including police reforms. Tension among the reformers, deep frustration with racial discrimination and economic oppression will also be the basis for reflection. One outcome of these efforts was the Collaborative Agreement and broad citizen engagement on public safety issues in Cincinnati that have been cited as a national model. The current state of the Collaborative Agreement will be reviewed as well as ongoing efforts to improve public safety while reducing arrests and mass incarceration. Opportunities to get involved in justice issues will also be shared.
- Linda Newman was a leader in the Coalition for a Just Cincinnati (CJC), and one of the persons sued by the Cincinnati Arts Association which sought to end a boycott by artists the Coalition organized.
- Iris Roley has served as the Program Director of CBUF for the past 24 years and also remains engaged in the implementation of the Collaborative Agreement.
- Al Gerhardstein is a civil rights attorney and has represented the Cincinnati Black United Front (CBUF) for the last 24 years. He remains engaged in the implementation of the Collaborative Agreement.
In 2022, prominent civil right attorney, Al Gerhardstein donated his papers to UC Libraries. Housed and available for study and research in the Archives and Rare Books Library, the extensive collection includes briefs, pleadings, depositions, trial transcriptions, newspaper, magazine and journal articles, as well as correspondence and speeches spanning Gerhardstein’s career and notable legal cases.
The event is free and open to all and is presented by a mini grant the UC Libraries RESPECT (Racial Equity Support Programming to Educate the Community Team).
Preventing Systemic Discrimination of Persons with Disabilities: How You Can Initiate the First Steps
When/Where: 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm, Tues., April 9 and Wed., April 10, Room 462 Walter C. Langsam Library
Join UC Libraries for two workshops aimed at educating and promoting change and empathy related to the systemic discrimination of persons with disabilities – “Preventing Systemic Discrimination of Persons with Disabilities: How You Can Initiate the First Steps.” Matthew Sauer, assistant director of accessibility resources at UC Clermont College, will facilitate hands-on activities and develop individual stories to give attendees a foundation in the systematic discrimination of persons with disabilities and challenge them to determine what transformations and next steps they will take for themselves. The result of the workshops will be to envision a strategy for building a culture of inclusion at the university and in UC Libraries with the hope that the feedback from these sessions will lead to annual events regarding the impact of eliminating systemic intolerance in favor of equity.
Continue readingRead Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.
Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.
In this issue of Source, Liz Kiscaden, dean and university librarian, writes about moving forging a path as we create our strategic plan. Readers can access the Strategic Plan to give a sense of what we accomplished in 2022/2023. Collections play a prominent theme in this issue, including in a new DAAP Library exhibit, Rediscovering Catherina van Hemmessen’s Flagellation of Christ: Women as Artists, Patrons and Rulers in Renaissance Europe, that features prints, books and manuscripts from the collections of UC Libraries and in the acquisitions of Blue Books in the Archives and Rare Books Library. Collaboration is another theme of this issue when we write about Poetry Stacked Beyond the Bookshelves and the efforts of several librarians and staff to present for school children participating in the College Mentors for Kids program. And don’t miss the article about the lost mural in the CEAS Library.
Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the website. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list
New Library Exhibit Explores Decolonizing the Library Catalog
A new exhibit on display on the fourth floor lobby of the Walter C. Langsam Library explores “Decolonizing the Library Catalog.” An important purpose of a library catalog is to ensure discoverability of materials. In addition to keywords that may or not be present in the book title or other parts of the record, subject headings are assigned to indicate the topics of library resources. Subject headings are created and maintained by a group of authorities, such as the Library of Congress, to help users find materials on a given topic. Headings are generally based on standard, contemporary American English-language usage and are intended to reflect current literature. (Adler). Subject headings can be problematic when they center whiteness, include outdated or offensive terminology and omit concepts related to people’s experiences. The display explores these issues, includes examples of problematic subject headings and lists ways in which people are working to update and improve the Library Catalog.
“Decolonizing the Library Catalog” was curated by Susan Banoun, team leader in eResources & Access, Mikaila Corday, eResources Department, and Olga Hart, coordinator of library instruction. It was designed by Francesca Voyten, communications design co-op student. The exhibit is sponsored by the Libraries RESPECT (Racial Equity Support Programming to Educate the Community Team) in honor of Black History Month.
To learn more, a print bibliography is available at the exhibit and posted below as an image.
UC Libraries Closed Monday, Jan. 15 for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
UC Libraries will be closed Monday, Jan. 15 in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. The Libraries will resume normal hours on Tuesday, Jan. 16.
Want to learn more about Martin Luther King, Jr., his impact and legacy, and how you can make a difference? Check out these library resources or watch this SWAY created in 2023 by the Libraries Racial Equity, Support & Programming to Educate the Community Team (RESPECT).
Join UC Libraries in reading and discussing “The Sum of Us”
UC Libraries’ RESPECT (Racial Equity Support Programming to Educate the Community Team) is hosting a book club featuring “The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We can Prosper Together” by Heather McGhee starting in January ’24 with monthly online discussions concluding with in an in-person talk in April.
The first 50 people to request a book will receive a physical copy.
In “The Sum of Us:”McGhee embarks on a deeply personal journey across the country from Maine to Mississippi to California, tallying what we lose when we buy into the zero-sum paradigm—the idea that progress for some of us must come at the expense of others. Along the way, she meets white people who confide in her about losing their homes, their dreams, and their shot at better jobs to the toxic mix of American racism and greed. This is the story of how public goods in this country—from parks and pools to functioning schools—have become private luxuries; of how unions collapsed, wages stagnated, and inequality increased; and of how this country, unique among the world’s advanced economies, has thwarted universal healthcare.
Penguin random house
Beginning in January, the book club will meet via Zoom to discuss the text over a series of three Fridays from 10:00-11:00am, January 26, February 23 and March 22. These meetings will culminate in a final wrap-up discussion on Friday, April 5 in-person and facilitated by Sinclair Community College’s Chief Diversity Officer Michael Carter.
To sign up to participate and be sent more information, fill out this form. The first 50 people to request a book will receive a physical copy. Physical copies and ebook access are also available to check out through UC Libraries. For any additional questions, e-mail Nimisha Bhat at nimisha.bhat@uc.edu.
Unmasked: Black Heroes in Comics Exhibit, November 6-December 8
The University of Cincinnati Libraries is hosting the traveling exhibit “Unmasked: Black Heroes in Comics.” On display on the fourth floor of the Walter C. Langsam Library through December 8, the exhibit was curated by the National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center and on loan from the Ohio History Center.
The museum describes the exhibit as:
Unit 1 of the exhibit starts in the 1930s with the legendary Jackie Ormes, the first Black woman cartoonist. It, and other panels featuring creators includes photos of the artist and examples of their work. Comics highlighted include, All-Negro Comics (1947), the first all-Black created comic book, Ohioan Jay Jackson, who arguably created the first Black superhero ever and Gene Bilbrew, who only recently has had his story revisited. The last panel goes into detail about the current controversy around the first Black superhero and where the research is currently pointing.
Unit 2 covers comics that impacted the Civil Rights Movement and then highlights Black creators entering the mainstream at Marvel and DC. It starts with Martin Luther King and the Montgomery Story and Youth in the Ghetto and the Blueprint for Change, two of the rarest comics related to the topic. Billy Graham, the first Black artist at Marvel is covered, along with Trevor Von Eeden, the first Black artist at DC Comics. The display ends with Black Women in Comics and the growing independent comics movement.
For more…
Attend the panel “From the Page to the Public Arena: How Comic Books, Graphic Novels, and Superheroes shape the American Experience” on Thursday, Nov. 9, 4pm, Digital Resource Commons in the Walter C. Langsam Library.
The traveling exhibit and corresponding events, is co-sponsored by Central State University and the University of Cincinnati: Academy of Fellows for Teaching and Learning, African American Cultural & Resource Center, Center for Studies in Jewish Education and Culture, Charles Phelps Taft Research Center, College of Arts & Sciences, College of Education, Criminal Justice, Human Services, and Information Technology, Department of Africana Studies, Department of History, Department of Sociology, Office of the Provost, University Honors Program and the University of Cincinnati Libraries.
Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.
Read Source, the online newsletter, to learn about the news, events, people and happenings in UC Libraries.
In this issue of Source, Liz Kiscaden, dean and university librarian, writes about Creating a shared vision for UC Libraries, and in an interview we learn more about her professional background, immediate goals for the new position and her early impressions of UC Libraries, as well as how she is having fun exploring Cincinnati.
We learn how Mikaila Corday did investigative work to catalog Japanese design books and the Digital Collections Team provides tips on how to digitize your home collections like a pro. We celebrate the return of the She-Wolf (Lupa) statue to Cincinnati and a new book published by the University of Cincinnati Press that focuses on the challenge for non-profits. We recap two recent events held in the Libraries: the Generational Summit and the Data & Poetry / Poetry & Data workshop.
Read these articles, as well as past issues, on the website. To receive Source via e-mail, contact melissa.norris@uc.edu to be added to the mailing list.
Announcing “The Bone Doctor’s Concerto: Music, Surgery, and the Pieces in Between” book launch August 8
Join UC Libraries and the University of Cincinnati Press for an unforgettable afternoon with Dr. Alvin H. Crawford, MD as he launches his new book “The Bone Doctor’s Concerto: Music, Surgery, and the Pieces in Between.”
Date: Tuesday, August 8, 2023
Time: 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM
Location: Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library | Stanley J. Lucas Board Room (MSB E005HA)
A buffet lunch will be provided. This event is free and open to all. RSVP is required.
The Book Launch is an in-person event, however, a Zoom link will be provided to maximize attendance and create a hybrid event for those interested. Please register to indicate your desire to attend in person or remotely.
About the Book
The story of one of Cincinnati’s most influential leaders in medicine.
Born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1939, Dr. Alvin Crawford grew up and attended medical school in a segregated world. Beginning with his early life in Orange Mound—a self-contained community for freed slaves established in the 1890s—Crawford’s autobiography describes his flirtation with a music degree and time spent playing in jazz bands through the segregated South. In 1960, Crawford began his ground-breaking medical career with his entrance into the University of Tennessee College of Medicine, becoming the school’s first African American student. After completing his medical training and traveling the world as a surgeon for the Navy, Crawford found himself in Cincinnati, where he established the Comprehensive Pediatric Orthopedic Clinic at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Center, the first in the region.
Underlying this story are the systemic and very personal incidents of racism Crawford experienced throughout his career. His autobiography is a personal account of segregation, integration, ambition, hard work and taking risks. “The Bone Doctor’s Concerto” is published by the University of Cincinnati Press.
Alvin Crawford is professor emeritus in the UC College of Medicine Department of Orthopaedic Surgery with more than 35 years of clinical experience in diagnosis and treatment in orthopedics. He is the recently retired founding director of the Crawford Spine Center at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital and Medical Center and a renowned expert in spinal deformities and neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder often associated with scoliosis. He is the first Black president of the Scoliosis Research Society and has been recognized in “America’s Best Doctors” since 1996.
And be sure to check out…
The Opening Doors: Contemporary African American Academic Surgeons traveling exhibit hosted by UC Libraries and the US National Library of Medicine.
Where: Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library | E-Level Exhibit Gallery
July 17, 2023 – Aug 11, 2023
