"The Cardigan Newsletter", the brainchild of two youth librarians from OK is a monthly newsletter packed with information on all things youth librarianship. It arrives on the 20th of every month in your inbox if you subscribe. Here's just one of the ten articles published this month:
Reflect
In the Shadow of Pittsburgh: Intellectual Freedom to Defend the Jewish People
Where we reflect on the deeper questions.
Allie
In the Shadow of Pittsburgh: Intellectual Freedom to Defend the Jewish People
Where we reflect on the deeper questions.
Allie
There has been a rise in anti-Semitic acts, the most recent including the mass shooting at a Synagogue in Pittsburgh. While I know all of our hearts ache at this injustice, it is Emily Schneider’s post, In the Shadow of Pittsburgh: Intellectual Freedom to Defend the Jewish People on the American Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Blog that gave me pause to my own actions as well as our profession’s actions regarding this horrific incident. Emily Schneider writes:
"At least, when I logged on to my computer after the Sabbath was over, and turned on cable news, I saw thorough and even passionate coverage of this latest atrocity, and witnessed the sincere and heartfelt empathy of Christians, Muslims, Hindus, people of color, neighbors of the victims or simply fellow citizens. Yet the response of the community in which I am active, advocates and professionals in children’s literature, has been relatively silent."
Schneider continues to note that many of our profession’s prominent sources for information, like School Library Journal and the ALSC Blog, were relatively silent about this event and did not offer resources for conversations related to Anti-Semitism. After reading this post, here are the questions I asked myself:
- What is the best way or medium for our profession to respond to injustices?
- What resources are available at my library and beyond that can help start a conversation about the rise in Anti-Semitism? Is there a gap in our collection?
- Is my library’s silence about this event speaking loudly to our Jewish patrons?
If your library did a display or a collection of resources in response to the mass shooting in Pittsburgh, we’d love to hear about it. If you are aware of other great resources related to this topic or have more to comment on this subject, please share with us at thecardigannewsletter@gmail.
Resources
- How to Talk to Children About Anti-Semitism from the PJ Library
- Bearing Witness from The Horn Book’s Family Reading blog
- Love Your Neighbor Book List from the Association of Jewish Libraries
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