ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries F eb ru a ry 199 6 / 9 3 Celebrating annual A frican Am erican events By Gerald V. H olm es Promote the rich heritage o f African Americans A frican American History Month is a time for librarians and faculty to focus on vari­ ous ways to promote the resources and ser­ vices available to faculty and students in librar­ ies. A lthough reso u rce s o n this to p ic a re important to educators at all levels of learning, this article focuses only on higher education. Alfred Young explains that . . . during the month of February of each year, colleges and universities, elementary and secondary schools, churches, civic and social organizations throughout the country s p o n s o r activ itie s w h ich h ig h lig h t th e achievements and contributions m ade by Afro-Americans. . . . the primary purpose of these activities is to instill within Afro-Ameri­ cans a sense of pride and accomplishment and to inform the general public of Black America’s glorious past.1 African American History Month can also serve as a motivational time to help prepare future African Americans to be scholars and leaders in our society. It is a time w hen African Americans can learn from the past while they prepare themselves for the future. One way to do this is to take advantage of the many resources available in an academic library. In 1926 Dr. Carter G. Woodson founded “Negro History W eek” w hich later becam e “Black History Month.” He also founded the Association for the Study o f Afro-American Life and History and wrote the book Mis-education o f the Negro, w hich states . . . the scholars under discussion all shared a common goal, namely, to provide for Ne­ gro youth access to historical information and education which w ould be “true” and thus nullify or diminish the false and belit­ tling propaganda type o f history which had been handed to them by whites. This, it was felt, w ould build up the black child’s self and race knowledge as well as his self-re­ spect. In a larger sense they expected that their publications w ould at least partly fill the unjustifiable void in American History and its antecedents, reveal the existing dis­ tortions of actual facts, and constitute a ser­ vice to the entire field o f historical and so­ cial science writing and understanding.2 Photo credit: Denish Sharp Gerald H olm es reads a p o e m at th e 6th A nnual African Am erican Read-In Chain at th e U n iversity o f C incinnati. Gerald V. Holmes is instruction librarian, Training a n d Educational Services Department, University o f Cincinnati; e-mail: Gerald.Holmes@UC.EDU mailto:Gerald.Holmes@UC.EDU 9 4 /C & R L N ew s Some of the ways that libraries can help to prom ote the availability of this information in­ clude: • assisting African Americans w ho w ant to study their heritage; • assisting patrons from other cultures w ho want to research topics related to African Ameri­ can culture; • seeking support for special programs on African American history; • identifying ways to better serve African Americans. In ad d itio n to African A merican History Month, other annual African American events include Kwanza (December 26–January 1) and Martin Luther King Jr. Day (third Monday in January). Libraries play a key role in providing significant inform ation o n African American history and biographical information on noted African Americans. In the past, African Ameri­ cans did not always have access to these col­ lections, but this has changed. We are reminded by Hill that . . . programs and services w ere developed to reach the nontraditional library users, re­ sulting in greater access to information for Blacks and other minorities. . . . Remember, libraries did not always serve all people. Before the mid-1800’s, libraries w ere mostly for scholars, university students, and the rich. Years of struggle by progressive librarians eventually changed this narrow role of li­ braries, and m ade them the open, vital in­ formation centers they are today.3 This im age from th e h o m e p a g e o f the A m istad R esearch C enter at Tulane U n i­ v e rsity w as created b y Ellis W ilson and is c alled “The Funeral P r o c e ssio n .” Not only are libraries now o p en to all people and the resources they contain available to any­ o n e w ho needs them, members o f the ALA, especially the Black Caucus o f ALA (BCALA), have played a leadership role in recruiting Af­ rican Americans to the library profession and supporting initiatives to develop library collec­ tions in the area o f African American history. Four ways to celebrate African American events include presenting: 1) annual displays and exhibits; Associated Publishers produces a kit that focuses on a yearly them e—the them e for the 1996 kit is “African American Women: Yesterday, Today, and Tom orrow ”;4 2) lectures that invite faculty, campus administrators, city or state officials, and visiting scholars to par­ ticipate; 3) group readings that can be orga­ nized similar to the brow n bag luncheon book talk format w here each luncheon focuses on the specifics of a particular author or book; and 4) multimedia presentations that include vid­ eos featuring African American themes. In 1990 the African American Read-In Chain, held ev­ ery first Sunday or Monday in February until the year 2000, was organized. First sponsored by the Black Caucus o f the National Council of Teachers o f English (NCTE), the local organiz­ ers are asked to assemble programs that high­ light readings worldwide. In 1995, at the Uni­ versity o f Cincinnati, a video series was aired on a closed-circuit library cable broadcast sys­ tem for educational purposes. Also in 1995, a similar program format at the Shrine of the Black M adonna Bookstore & Cultural Center in H ous­ ton sponsored a w eekly series of multimedia presentations w hich included AFRICA: Center o f the World, A frican Holocaust & Diaspora, H arlem Renaissance, an d The B la ck Power Movement. Ideas like these are just a few ways that the library can creatively honor outstand­ ing African Americans. G raph ic d isp la y s on the Internet A nother idea to co n sid er w h en sponsoring upcom ing African American events is to lure students, faculty, and staff into using innova­ tive library resources to feature remote research materials via electronic networks. The World Wide Web hom epages, Netscape, and Mosaic com bine creativity, information, and network access within minutes. Three examples of W eb hom epages are: • The U ptow n C ham ber o f C om m erce H arlem W eek 1995 Web Page, w hich aired an events calendar with the them e “A Harlem F ebruary 1 9 9 6 / 9 5 Resources fo r celebrating A frican A m erican events Books an d so ftw are For vendors w ho produce audio books, graph­ ics software, a directory of Internet Resources, and companies that can assist libraries look­ ing for materials that are out of print contact the following: A u d io b o o k s JIMCIN Recordings [Portsmouth, Rhode Is­ land, (800) 538-3034] has a collection of au­ dio books that includes Arm y Life in a Black Regiment, Uncle Tom ’s Cabin, The Souls o f Black Folk, and A Narrative o f the Life o f Fred­ erick Douglass. G ra p h ics s o ftw a r e AfroLink Software [Los Angeles, (213) 731- 54651 has a collection of graphics for fliers, posters, and exhibits. In tern et r e s o u r c e s d ir e c to r y On Demand Press [Columbia, Maryland, (410) 720-1249) publishes the title African Am erican Resource Guide to the Internet. O ut o f p r in t s e r v ic e s Sylvester & Orphanos, Booksellers & Pub­ lishers [Hollywood, California, (213) 461-1194], University Microfilm, Inc. (UMI) [Ann Ar­ bor, Michigan, (800) 521-0600], African-American: Books By and About Catalog, Waiting for Godot Books [Hadley, Massachusetts, (413) 585-5126], Internet resources For discussion listservs and electronic jour­ nals that can assist librarians looking for ma­ terials and infonnation, contact the following: E lectronic d is c u s s io n lis ts e r v s AFAM-L, African American research forum for exchange of information, ideas, and con­ cerns of African American studies and of Afri- ca n A m eric an s. Su b scrib e: LISTSERV® MIZZOU1; LISTSERVE@MIZZOUl.MISSOURI. EDU. AFAS-L, ACRL’s Afro-American Studies Librarian's Section discussion focused on Af­ rican American studies and librarianship that may include peripheral issues such as race relations and multicultural diversity. Subscribe: LISTSF.RV@KENTVM; LISTSF.RV@KENTVM. KENT.EDU E -journals EJAS-L, Electronic Jo u rn a l f o r A fricana Studies, is a biennial, peer-reviewed electronic journal which communicates scholarly thought on African A m erican stu d ies. Subscribe: LISTSERV@KENTVM; LISTSERV@KENTVM. KENT.EDU EJBlack, Electronic Journal o f Black Librari­ anship, is a biennial, peer-reviewed electronic journal which communicates scholarly thought on black librarianship and information science. Subscribe: LISTSERV@KENTVM; LISTSERV@ KENTVM.KENT.EDU State of Mind: Oh! What a Beautiful Feeling.” Programs included arts and crafts, comedy, edu­ cation/career, and health. Access: http://w w w . tmn. com /Artswire/harlemweek/events, html. • U niversal Blackpages W ebsite, p ro­ duced by the Black Graduate Students Associa­ tion at Georgia Technical University. Access: h ttp ://w w w .g a te c h .e d u /b g s a /b la c k p a g e s / info.html. • A m ista d R e s e a r c h C e n te r WWW H om e Page at T ulane U niversity. Access: http://w w w .arc.tulane.edu. Sum m ary Celebrating annual African American events al­ lows a time to focus on what libraries have available to support African American students as they pursue their education. It is also a time to focus on how librarians and faculty can help African American students sharpen their skills in library use in order to better prepare them for their chosen careers. In the past, libraries did not always open their doors to all races. For many libraries, as well as college and uni­ versity campuses, celebrating the accomplish­ ments of African Americans is a new challenge. Today’s library is a challenging resource for most students w ho desire to learn the intricate details of library research. Students and faculty should be aware that technology is constantly changing and everyone in the university or college community is learning by accommo­ http://www http://www.gatech.edu/bgsa/blackpages/ http://www.arc.tulane.edu 9 6 /C & R L N ew s Photo credit : Gerald Holmes An African A m erican H istory M onth d isp lay at K ent State U n iversity. dating to change o n a day-to-day basis. From he incom ing freshm en to post-doctoral stu­ dents, African Americans should not be over­ whelmed with the vast am ount o f information (History c o n t.fr o m p age 84) • Civil War Photographs: From th e Li­ brary o f C ongress. A selection of important photo g rap h s. Access: h ttp ://lcw eb 2 .lo c.g o v / cw phome.html. • Rare M aps fr o m th e U n iv e r s ity o f Georgia. Colonial, Revolutionary, nineteenth- century, and many other m aps housed at the Special Collections o f the University o f Geor­ gia are m ade available to the public. Access: h ttp ://scarlett.lib s.u g a.ed u /d arch iv e/h arg rett/ m aps/m aps.htm l. • A m erican M em ory Project: Library o f C ongress. This remarkable project makes avail­ able docum ents, sp eech es an d other sound recordings, photographs, and, most impressive, som e actual scanned manuscripts. Access: http: //lcw eb2.1oc.gov/amhome.html. • A m erican P ro h ib itio n Project. Ohio State University’s history hom epage provides access to photographs and primary text relat­ ing to the history o f prohibition from its ante­ cedents in the 1870s through the 1920s. Access: h ttp ://w w w .c o h u m s.o h io -s ta te .e d u /h is to ry / projects/prohibition/default.htm . that is available to them w hen enrolling at a new university or college. Librarians should b e eager to help these new students becom e comfortable using the library and its resources to support their entire academic career, and they should provide a strong foundation to prepare students for the future. African Ameri­ can students should not leave the academic environm ent without being library literate. To prepare for lifelong learning requires that stu­ dents continue to acquire new skills, pursue career opportunities, enhance their potential for career advancement, an d invest time to de­ velop library research skills. Notes 1. Alfred Young, “The Historical Origin and Significance of National Afro-American History Month O bservance,” Negro History Bulletin 43 ( 1980): 6–8 . 2. Charles H. Wesley and Thelma D. Perry, introduction to Carter G. W oodson, The Mis- education o f the Negro (1933; reprint, Wash­ ington, D.C.: Associated Publishers, 1969). 3. Levirn Hill, “Why We Need More Black Librarians,” ABBWA Journal 4 (1992): 29–30. 4. For information on the kits contact Associ­ ated Publishers at (202) 265-1441. ■ Electronic jo u rn als Thus far, electronic journals are not a rich source of information for historians o f the U.S. For keeping u p with the advent o f such journals connect to CICnet. Access: gopher://gopher.cic. net: 2000/11/e-serials/archive. Or try the Elec­ tronic Journals gopher. Access: g o p h er://p eg . cw is.uci.edu:7000/l1/goρher. w elcom e/peg/ej. Bibliographies An area that promises to b e very valuable is that o f bibliographies. So far the listservs have been the best source of small reading lists, of­ fered by know ledgeable historians; however, a few lengthy searchable bibliographies are available. The best exam ple is the one on Mar­ tin Luther King Jr., from Stanford University, consisting of thousands of sources. Access: tel- net://forsythetn.stanford.edu/. Note: W hen you m ake the connection type socrates for account, then type yes, and then type select mlk. Please try our W eb page for leads to many other sources. Access: http://w w w .rutgers.edu/ rulib/artshum/amhist.html. ■ http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ http://scarlett.libs.uga.edu/darchive/hargrett/ http://www.cohums.ohio-state.edu/history/ gopher://gopher.cic gopher://peg http://www.rutgers.edu/