tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28310813124586488652024-03-05T01:02:09.339-05:00The Professional Life of an African American Male LibrarianAn alumnus of Wayne State University School of Information Sciences (SIS), I am an experienced academic librarian and literacy expert. I currently serve as Education and Youth Services Librarian at the University of Northern Iowa. Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.comBlogger51125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-18612347029795661772024-01-01T01:30:00.002-05:002024-01-01T02:08:34.028-05:00Digital Humanities and African American Studies<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span><span face=""Trebuchet MS",sans-serif"><b>This article is an updated version of a blog entry originally written in February 2015.<br /></b></span></span></span><div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #ffe599;"><span face=""Trebuchet MS",sans-serif"><b><br /></b></span></span></span></div><div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #ffe599;"><span face=""Trebuchet MS",sans-serif"><b>A Wikipedia Entry:</b></span></span></span><br />
<p style="text-align: left;"><b>Digital Humanities </b>is an area of research and teaching at the intersection of computing and the disciplines of the humanities. Developing from the fields of humanities computing, humanistic computing,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-2"></sup> and digital humanities praxis <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-3"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_humanities#cite_note-3"></a></sup> digital humanities embraces a variety of topics, [from artificial intelligence (AI)] to data mining large cultural data sets. Digital humanities (often abbreviated DH) currently incorporates both digitized and born-digital materials and combines the methodologies from traditional humanities disciplines (such as history, philosophy, linguistics, literature, art, archaeology, music, and cultural studies) and social sciences <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-digital-humanities-network_4-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_humanities#cite_note-digital-humanities-network-4"></a></sup> with tools provided by computing (such as data visualization, information retrieval, data mining, statistics, text mining, digital mapping), and digital publishing.</p>
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An academic librarian and humanities scholar trained in the interpretive methodologies of English literature, I wondered how these exciting new tools were explored within the fields of African American and African Studies. What new research questions and epistemological assumptions may AI, data visualization, text mining, and online collections engender? <br />
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A cursory Internet search yielded quite a few surprises.<br />
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According to Duke University Professor <a href="https://provost.duke.edu/profile/mark-anthony-neal/">Dr. Mark Anthony Neal</a>, the "relationship between Black Studies and digital humanities. . . is at once precarious and filled with potential" (Terman, n.d., para 2). Neal claimed that is precarious because digital humanities scholar[s] have" been imagined as a white, male academic[s]. (Terman, n.d., para 6). Neal noted that part of the problem is that the "field . . . continues to be driven by older scholars [who are] still very much tied to a [pre-digital] 1960s style Black Studies model.</div><div><br /></div><div>As a literacy doctoral student at Oakland University (Rochester, Michigan), I used data mining to investigate the role of literacy and literacy education in the antebellum slave narratives of Frederick Douglass, William Wells Brown, Henry Bibb, and Harriet Jacobs. The scholarship that informed my dissertation is largely in the 1960s Black Studies model. It is founded on print-based manuscripts produced mainly by tenure-track and tenured professors from the mid 1980s to early 2000s. I was able to use data mining techniques because the narratives themselves were digitized for the Project Gutenberg online archives.<br /><div><br /></div><div>Although much has been written about artificial intelligence and large machine learning, I am not surprised that not much has been produced about AI and African American studies. In a compelling experiment with ChatGPT, public school librarian <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/classroom-voices/educator-voices/2023/03/educator-voice-artificial-intelligence-attempts-black-history-and-fails" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Jean Darnell</a>, describes misformation and racial bias in a short article generated by ChatGPT. Darnell noted that ChatGPT oversimplified African American history by omitting crucial issues and pressure points. For instance, the ChatGPT generated articled did not mention nineteenth-century African American struggles for literacy and literacy education. I assume that the large data sets used to train ChatGPT contain little to no information about that crucial part of African American history. <div><br /></div><div><div><a href="https://www.uta.edu/academics/faculty/profile?username=rambsyk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Dr. Kenton Rambsy</a>, Associate Professor, the University of Texas at Arlington, University of Kansas, discussed the implications of text mining in short stories by Edward P. Jones and other African American writers. Using text mining software, Rambsy discovered a specific pattern of landmarks and geographical descriptions in Jones' short stories. Rambsy claimed that Jones' frequent use of location serves as a type of geo-tagging or literary geo-tagging.</div><div>
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I discovered <a href="http://afripod.aodl.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Africa Past & Present</a>, an excellent site that features podcasts "history, culture, and politics in Africa and the diaspora." If features several podcasts archived as digital humanities. I was particularly interested in Laura E. Seay's <a href="http://afripod.aodl.org/2015/02/afripod-89/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">podcast</a> in which she discusses her use of Twitter to document her academic work on the Democratic Republic of Congo. <br />
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"<a href="https://www.loc.gov/collections/?q=African+American" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">African American History</a>", a digital humanities collection the Library of Congress, features excellent podcasts and virtual exhibitions about African American culture and history.<br />
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Overall, the intersection of digital humanities and African American/ African studies, with its challenges, seems to provide opportunities for new methodologies and theoretical frameworks within the digital humanities. I look forward to navigating this rocky terrain to contribute original scholarship to both digital humanities and African American/ African studies.<br />
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<b>SOURCES</b><br />
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<span style="font-weight: normal;">Alegi, P. & Limb. P. (2015, 3 Feb). Episode 89: Digital African studies Part 2 with Laura Seay. <i>Africa Past and Present</i>. Podcast retrieved 31 December 2023 from <a href="http://afripod.aodl.org/2015/02/afripod-89/">http://afripod.aodl.org/2015/02/afripod-89/.</a></span> <br />
<br />Darnell, J. (2023, 30 Mar). Educator Voice: Artificial intelligence attempts Black history (and fails). <i>PBS Newshour Classroom: Educator Voices</i>. Retrieved 31 Dec 2023 from <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/classroom-voices/educator-voices/2023/03/educator-voice-artificial-intelligence-attempts-black-history-and-fails">https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/classroom-voices/educator-voices/2023/03/educator-voice-artificial-intelligence-attempts-black-history-and-fails</a><a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/classroom/classroom-voices/educator-voices/2023/03/educator-voice-artificial-intelligence-attempts-black-history-and-fails"> </a></div><div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;"><br /></div><div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;">
<span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>Digital Humanities.(2015, 19 Feb). Retrieved 31 December 2023 from <i>Wikipedia</i>: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_humanities">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_humanities</a><br />
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Library of Congress (n.d). Digital Collections: African American History. Retrieved 31 December 2023 from <a href="https://www.loc.gov/collections/?q=African+American">https://www.loc.gov/collections/?q=African+American</a></div><div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;"><br />Rambsy, K. (2014, 17 Jan). Edward P. Jones and literary geo-tagging. Retrieved 31 December, 2023 from <i>Cultural Front</i>: <a href="http://www.culturalfront.org/2014/01/edward-p-jones-and-literary-geo-tagging.html">http://www.culturalfront.org/2014/01/edward-p-jones-and-literary-geo-tagging.html.</a></div><div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;"><br /></div><div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> Terman, R. (n.d.) Black studies and digital </span>humanities: Perils and promise. <i>Townsend Center for the Humanities</i>. University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved 31 December 2023 from <a href="https://townsendcenter.berkeley.edu/blog/black-studies-and-digital-humanities-perils-and-promise">https://townsendcenter.berkeley.edu/blog/black-studies-and-digital-humanities-perils-and-promise</a><br />
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Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-83427516879464892352023-12-31T22:58:00.001-05:002023-12-31T22:58:33.983-05:00New Year Wishes<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiiUzRCkhImYkXJymxZOV1mdY3QwyhC-frTwQ-kQ4tgndcr6LEn02WZwyqC010bk4lAKpP5heX_BHWMurs6QtelEi9VD4GCGBA_UkSDeeQf2_BOhW_ktePoIn7t9cWD0zh2B8_SSYUmlxdmSBq5E9vuqM2yo6WieferQQTAV4F-g0JpD6_QVf5yvA4_Rvs" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1280" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiiUzRCkhImYkXJymxZOV1mdY3QwyhC-frTwQ-kQ4tgndcr6LEn02WZwyqC010bk4lAKpP5heX_BHWMurs6QtelEi9VD4GCGBA_UkSDeeQf2_BOhW_ktePoIn7t9cWD0zh2B8_SSYUmlxdmSBq5E9vuqM2yo6WieferQQTAV4F-g0JpD6_QVf5yvA4_Rvs=w400-h400" width="400" /></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">In 2024, may we seek challenges and opportunities to become wiser than we are today. </span><p></p><p><br /><br /></p>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-8905251426793570922023-11-29T18:30:00.002-05:002023-11-29T18:30:58.072-05:00My First 100 Days as Librarian for Education and Youth Services at University of Northern Iowa<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi11uX7gxDLpzhOizfES_ina6Ep0Dh_7eorI1ysGWOHLeJqxNeJRr7cJmXOn1VoDM2uroiKx0TOpxH-QnfQYHsOVeZH05LzQmYf4IqBxH8P-6nyY9HbphVEb7zC36HhusTZ06mkLxJatfO9PtwVcHrhdN0wsuYobVMlmx7iq0OuFT-VBgyu1MoOccuMszE/s474/UNI-logos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="355" data-original-width="474" height="516" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi11uX7gxDLpzhOizfES_ina6Ep0Dh_7eorI1ysGWOHLeJqxNeJRr7cJmXOn1VoDM2uroiKx0TOpxH-QnfQYHsOVeZH05LzQmYf4IqBxH8P-6nyY9HbphVEb7zC36HhusTZ06mkLxJatfO9PtwVcHrhdN0wsuYobVMlmx7iq0OuFT-VBgyu1MoOccuMszE/w685-h516/UNI-logos.jpg" width="685" /></a></div><br /> Since August 2023, I have worked as <a href="https://library.uni.edu/directory/johnnie-romon-blunt-phd" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Librarian for Education and Youth Services </a>at University of Northern Iowa Rod Library. One of two faculty members with doctorates, I engage in library instruction, research consultations, presentations, faculty collaborations, and collection development activities that align with the strategic plans of Rod Library and UNI. <p></p><p>This position has its challenges, rewards, and opportunities. I work at a beautiful library on a gorgeous campus in a bucolic area of Iowa. I work with some truly generous colleagues. Yet I also work through challenging university and state politics that have helped me to become a better speaker and librarian. Through these challenges, I have found my voice. I have gained agency. Although I frequently feel frustrated, I am blessed to be a part of UNI. </p>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-81939771123706349322023-05-12T22:16:00.001-04:002023-05-12T22:21:07.193-04:00The Professional Life of an African American Male Librarian: An Interlude and a Return<p><b><span style="font-size: large;">Hello! </span></b></p><p>I have been missing in action from this blog since 2020. </p><p><b>Life happened</b>. </p><p>From 2020 to 2022, I worked as a mortgage banker and then a mortgage underwriter for Rocket Mortgage. Like many in the industry, I took a buyout when rising interest rates forced Rocket Mortgage and others mortgage companies to trim their employee rosters. I did not waste time during this period. In fact, I worked harder for that corporation than I ever did for any other entity. Because of the Rocket Mortgage's incredibly competitive environment, I became more self-confident. I grew my personal brand and appreciated what I bring to the table. </p><p><b>More importantly, I understood what brought me joy.<span style="color: red;"> </span></b></p><p>Some of you may know that I had been a doctoral student at Oakland University since September 2015. On April 29, 2023, I was graduated from the doctoral program in Literacy, Culture, and Language at OU. My dissertation focuses on the roles of literacy and literacy instruction in the antebellum slave narratives of Frederick Douglass, William Wells Brown, Henry Bibb, and Harriet Jacobs. I argue that the ability to read, write, listen, and speak enabled these authors to engage in the early-to mid-nineteenth-century political conversations and debates about slavery and thus to fight oppression on a global scale. </p><p><b>My blog focuses literacy and librarianship from this sociopolitical perspective. </b></p><p>Now that I have earned my Ph.D., I will use this space to engage in the sociopolitical conversations about librarianship, literacy, and literacy instruction in the twenty-first century. </p><p><i>Librarianship and libraries are political.</i></p><p><i>Literacy and literacy instruction are political. </i></p><p><i>Anything we do as citizens in our various communities is inherently political. </i></p><p><b>Political neutrality is impossible</b>.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjLYQJUeGEUej-_pqPeZjDraLWgOzWyEGNgpg_B75bfufYaLYj0r3nwEXKOSBHT0ObmAdaoINE7DmYx4IKGnyw9KqAN-Tz99-pkEVClyyZFh8c7A5IWq9fN-nPluyPhDhwEsdfEOwdsn8H1h_7livbu6mlin-ISpCdKT49bjpGMKPTUov37z0Yx6pQ/s474/doctoral-degree.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="345" data-original-width="474" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjLYQJUeGEUej-_pqPeZjDraLWgOzWyEGNgpg_B75bfufYaLYj0r3nwEXKOSBHT0ObmAdaoINE7DmYx4IKGnyw9KqAN-Tz99-pkEVClyyZFh8c7A5IWq9fN-nPluyPhDhwEsdfEOwdsn8H1h_7livbu6mlin-ISpCdKT49bjpGMKPTUov37z0Yx6pQ/s16000/doctoral-degree.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p><br /></p>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-18390893861617571302023-05-12T17:10:00.000-04:002023-05-12T17:10:34.603-04:00Critical Literacy or Reading is a Very Political Act<div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUMnIrbKphlx-96gksfiCWXU7bqbo75lVhONMhL17cHvX13wn2kJMVLiFnp05aUBYiZ9WfJMQIWjGIZvogdMiJC_HNr0S6wF0ogihyphenhyphen1v18O252s13AxWLvwnQzzDg8uh2rAgpzfN5aXsg/s1600/reading-is-political-act.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUMnIrbKphlx-96gksfiCWXU7bqbo75lVhONMhL17cHvX13wn2kJMVLiFnp05aUBYiZ9WfJMQIWjGIZvogdMiJC_HNr0S6wF0ogihyphenhyphen1v18O252s13AxWLvwnQzzDg8uh2rAgpzfN5aXsg/s400/reading-is-political-act.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://bookriot.com/2015/02/10/reading-political-act/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Reading is a very political act.</a> I use political broadly. Derived from the ancient Greek term <i>polis,</i> political refers to city-states and by extension to the people in those states. Historically, the ability to decode and interpret signs and symbols was an important indicator of full citizenship status. To deny people access to reading was tantamount to denying them full citizenship.<br />
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As I discussed in my previous blog entry, this denial was a very important method to keep African-Americans in a non-citizen status in some states of the antebellum south. </div>
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Paulo Freire and Donaldo Macedo (1987) understood and complicated the very political act of reading. In <i><a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/Literacy.html?id=lr2ia2Q2i94C" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Literacy: Reading the Word and the World</a></i>, the authors argue that reading should not be reduced to mere technical/ survival skills. Reading (literacy) is "viewed as a set of practices that functions to either empower or disempower people" (viii). As such, the authors analyzed literacy "according to whether it serves to reproduce existing social formation or serves as a set of practices of cultural practices that promotes democratic and emancipatory change". Previously, I implied that current reading education practices tend to reproduce the status quo and thus leans towards to disempowering working-class African American boys--who may otherwise become too politically disruptive. </div>
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Freire and Macedo's assumptions about reading generated the field of "<a href="https://tinyurl.com/sh6yhva" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">critical literacy</a>," a term associated with <a href="https://vimeo.com/87212871" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Allan Luke</a>. Luke defined critical literacy as "the use of the technologies of print and other media of communication to analyze, critique, and transform the norms, rule systems and practices governing the social fields of everyday life" (2). Luke noted that the focus of critical literacy is the critique of social and political worlds as presented in media, literature, textbooks and functional texts (5).<br />
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Critical literacy involves a continuing interrogation of what seems natural and inevitable in the world, from the often exploitative nature of capitalism to the ubiquitous preferences for narratives that celebrate and seek to reproduce Whiteness and heteronormativity. <br />
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For instance, I engage in critical literacy through this blog. I recently interrogated the causes of low reading outcomes for working-class African American boys. In an upcoming entry, I will question the use of quotes and passages from Victorian novels to assess the literacy achievements of 21st-century middle-school students, especially since most of these students have almost no connection to the cultures that produced these novels. Apparently, the PSAT uses sections of 19th-century literature to test how well-read students are. When I tutored the reading comprehension portion of the PSAT to 15 8th-graders recently, I saw this use of "classic literature" as an assessment of students' socioeconomic status, not of their ability to read and comprehend texts.<br />
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Although I majored in English literature, I still question the use of dead White authors to teach literacy and literature to the exclusion of students' own lived experiences and cultures. <br />
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<b><span style="color: white;">Reading is a very political act</span></b><span style="color: red;">.</span> There is nothing more political than reproducing a privileged cultural status and political ideology through the use of certain privileged texts. I will continue to be very critical of the ways we teach and use literacy to enable and disable people of color and other marginalized communities.<br />
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Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-52051540565438373862020-02-12T18:36:00.002-05:002023-05-12T21:28:58.926-04:00The Social and Relational Turns in Information and Information Literacy Instruction: Some Practical Suggestions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><div><br /></div>Imagine </span>our world after we <i>homo sapiens</i> have died out and no other species can interpret the volumes of information and data we have left behind. Are those artifacts still information and data? <span style="font-size: large;"><b>My answer is no</b>.</span> If no person or other entity can read or write the surviving documents, information and data do not exist. Many "things" may exist, but they are neither data nor information.<br />
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As I commented in a <a href="https://blackmalelibrarians.blogspot.com/2019/12/information-literacy-relational-approach.html" target="_blank">previous post</a>, information is the relationship or connection between two or more people. Without this connection, information is impossible. As linguist <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Halliday" target="_blank">Michael Halliday</a> and sociologists <a href="http://newschoolhistories.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Berger-social-construction-of-reality.pdf" target="_blank">Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann</a> demonstrated, language itself is impossible outside the context of human cultures and relationships. Language is the building block of all information and data. If language is impossible outside of cultures and relationships, information and data are also impossible outside of such contexts.<br />
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I emphasize the relational nature of information and data to disrupt current concepts of things and processes in academic information literacy instruction. When I was an academic librarian at a suburban university in Michigan, I was one of several lecturers who was responsible for the lion's share of bibliographic instruction for students in a first-year research writing course. I taught over 300 students per semester.<br />
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Lectures and class activities focused on students using proprietary databases to find, evaluate, and use information. Students seemed to understand information as "stuff" on the Internet. They used this stuff to hastily create a paper or presentation that may be graded by an instructor and then forgotten. For these students, information was part of an academic "<a href="https://img1.etsystatic.com/012/0/5051962/il_fullxfull.411110007_ixe5.jpg" target="_blank">trivial pursuit</a>" on route to more important goals: a college degree and a well-paying career. Information wasn't a connection to other people. It was simply stuff. That only mattered to a teacher. Who gave them a grade. Ten years in the future, these students most likely will not remember this exercise using this stuff.<br />
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<b>Why should students remember? The process and product seem to bear no resemblance to their social realities--personally or professionally.</b></blockquote>
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To remedy this problem, I suggest that we frame information literacy courses and classes (including one-shots) as approaches to ethical behavior within a nexus of relationships in a community. Doing a one-shot? Emphasize the connection between audiences and writers and the larger sociopolitical context. I once used that approach. The students were excited because their research became something more than just a quick plug and play exercise for a grade.<br />
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Students do no understand the importance of correct citations? Focus on how the use of correct citations facilitates trust between them and others in their community. And how accuracy in these intricate details helps to build trust in other relationships, including those involving them and their future employers.<br />
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In short, we should try to recreate authentic social environments when we teach information literacy and conduct bibliographic instruction.<br />
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Information and data (like we humans) cannot exist in a vacuum. The <a href="http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/ilframework" target="_blank">ACRL Framework</a> defines scholarship as conversation. Conversation implies a connection, however brief, between two or more people. When we connect information and data to the living, social world students inhibit every day, we rescue our instruction from being routine classes about "stuff" that these students will forget the moment they leave our classes.Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-69621518077824296792020-01-26T23:32:00.000-05:002020-02-10T07:59:33.146-05:00Gender, Race, and the Unbearable Stillness and Silence of Reading<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<h3>
Reading and White Female Bodies</h3>
<span style="font-size: medium;">In Western art, reading has been intimately linked to White female bodies. Often alone in their chambers, these bodies carefully decode texts in silence. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">Despite much research on multiliteracies or multicultural literacy education, I argue that the image of White female bodies silently perusing books is still the core image associated with reading.</span><br />
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Boys and Reading</h3>
<span style="font-size: medium;">For many boys, especially working-class African American boys, this emphasis on stillness and silence may be contrary to natural tendencies to be physically active and very vocal during that activity.</span><br />
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My Own Experience with the Traditional Model of Reading</h3>
<span style="font-size: medium;">A quick Google search revealed many <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/reading-minds/201803/what-is-it-boys-and-reading" target="_blank">articles</a> about how boys tend to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/21/books/review/boys-and-reading-is-there-any-hope.html" target="_blank">read less</a> and often <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/oct/22/the-truth-about-boys-and-books-they-read-less-and-skip-pages" target="_blank">skip pages</a> while reading. I confess that I tend to do that at my age (56). Often the material seems convoluted but not intellectually rigorous.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">When I was a graduate student in English literature, I often encountered books written in such a convoluted, windy style that I skipped through much of the reading. I would read the introduction for the gist of the author's argument and then skim (skip through) the rest of the book. I felt stupid because I didn't focus on every word and wasn't engaged deeply with the scholarly material.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">I didn't focus and wasn't engaged because I felt the material seemed boring and very verbose. Authors would apparently use 500 words when I thought 50 would have the same effect. They often changed verbs into nouns (nominalization) to achieve often convoluted sentences. </span><span style="font-size: medium;">Coincidentally, the field of English Literature, once dominated by White men, is largely the domain of White female bodies--silently reading books, apparently alone.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">I have never been athletic and very rarely have I been restless. But even my eyes glaze over when I see too many words that seem to render too little meaning. I consider myself a very well-read person. Thanks in part to a solid liberal arts education, I have read the classics (Homer, Shakespeare, Virgil, Dante, Austen, Morrison). Because I minored in Latin language and literature, I even read some of those ancient Latin texts in the original language. I enjoyed every moment. I have read many novels, including the works of Cervantes and Dickens. I like to read.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Embodied Reading or The Whole Body Approach<br />
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How I Survived the Traditional Model of Reading</h3>
<span style="font-size: medium;">I like to read because I tend to read differently. My entire body is involved. I talk aloud and ask questions. I pause frequently. </span><span style="font-size: medium;">I move around the room. I do anything but be still and silent. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">In short, if I need to be active while I read, the typical boy most likely needs to be active while he reads.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">The following image illustrates and defines good readers. Apparently, I and many other boys and men are not good readers. Numerous scholars and teachers wonder why so many of us men and boys don't like to read. A part of the answer is simple: we can't put our bodies into it.</span><br />
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<br />Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-58948748871810157292019-12-25T14:13:00.000-05:002019-12-26T20:20:07.280-05:00The Literate Black Man as a Sociopolitical Threat or Reading is Fundamental<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg02XAB1EwLYjfwLOAEUxdbonEB9G7If3h4StKLw-lqYX4ig4aziish-EmeVD2ZADDblajQ_03czit13GIkC1G3Rc23PVHeJeKIzcwb328CJyDfSbg1xwK8Km-fqajI1c-Lxab7jf3zxE/s1600/african20american20boy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="African American child with book and basketball" border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="451" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg02XAB1EwLYjfwLOAEUxdbonEB9G7If3h4StKLw-lqYX4ig4aziish-EmeVD2ZADDblajQ_03czit13GIkC1G3Rc23PVHeJeKIzcwb328CJyDfSbg1xwK8Km-fqajI1c-Lxab7jf3zxE/s1600/african20american20boy.jpg" title="African American Boy Reading" /></a></div>
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<h3>
Working-Class African American Boys and the Literacy Problem<br />
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<a href="https://www.rif.org/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Reading is fundamental</a>. The ability to decode and understand written language is a basic and important skill. <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/files/u81/Stanovich__1986_.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Literacy research</a> has demonstrated if children do not know how to read proficiently before 4th grade, they will probably suffer academically for the rest of their K-12 schooling experience. And most likely beyond.<br />
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This problem is what Reading expert <a href="https://childrenofthecode.org/interviews/stanovich.htm" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Keith Stanovich</a> labeled "The Matthew Effect". Proficient readers often become more academically proficient. Struggling readers often become less academically proficient. This progression seems to support Stanovich's suggestion that reading can make you smarter.<br />
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In the United States, The Matthew Effect disproportionately impacts working-class African American boys. They often score in the <a href="http://ourweekly.com/news/2013/oct/03/whats-african-american-literacy-rates/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">lowest percentiles</a> on reading comprehension tests.<br />
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Numerous <a href="http://neatoday.org/2016/02/26/reading-young-black-males/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">popular </a>articles and <a href="https://tinyurl.com/uusoo59" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">scholarly</a> works regularly describe the problem of African American boys not knowing how to read complex, literary texts aloud with adequate fluency of pronunciation (prosody).<br />
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Apparently, many of these boys cannot even recognize the smallest units of sounds (phonemes) in first and second grades. If, as Stanovich suggests, reading makes one smart, then many working-class African American boys may be perceived as less than intelligent.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4aggcHlxW9eSKeU2yiLj92m0trlEqk96V5Fw3dMBL7fQIt2cCNFTixMjwvGUro5SbpXAxmXRistnQ2rWlok6BrPbhUGJYry44xmc4HQ_2ciQDnLWuIcWElJwf7a94nItbVP-sMt-WISY/s1600/frederick-douglass-mini-biography-1180x664.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="picture of abolitionish Frederick Douglass" border="0" data-original-height="664" data-original-width="1180" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4aggcHlxW9eSKeU2yiLj92m0trlEqk96V5Fw3dMBL7fQIt2cCNFTixMjwvGUro5SbpXAxmXRistnQ2rWlok6BrPbhUGJYry44xmc4HQ_2ciQDnLWuIcWElJwf7a94nItbVP-sMt-WISY/s320/frederick-douglass-mini-biography-1180x664.jpg" title="Frederick Douglass" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Frederick Douglass</td></tr>
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<b>Now for the hard question: who benefits from this perception?</b> In the antebellum South, the answer was relatively simple: slave-owners and an economy based on slave labor.<br />
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A literate slave was a dangerous slave, as <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/nat-turner" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Nat Turner</a>, <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/frederick-douglass" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Frederick Douglass</a>, and many others demonstrated.<br />
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Literate slaves often questioned the status quo. They debated the nature of oppression and quoted authority to support their pro-freedom claims. They sometimes forged documents (<a href="http://exhibit.library.pitt.edu/freeatlast/freedom_papers.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">freedom papers</a>) that facilitated slave escapes. Apparently, literate African American men were the most dangerous of slaves. Like Nat Turner, they can reason and lead bloody insurrections.<br />
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<h3>
Anti-Literacy Laws<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_2WeFEZ6clUpdJLGiNW8cIVV12IbZy6Y5WmTWUwOOnXKe69Sg78y74nccj_AWnn-sPe5VapxR4ScxmF85-km5VUruuCu-cDhA1lnyDzOryc9Lk8w83wVdjOiQpi4Wcc0OPHFPNk8KIw/s1600/nat-turner-slave-revolt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="19th-century illustration of Nat Turner Rebellion" border="0" data-original-height="418" data-original-width="500" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4_2WeFEZ6clUpdJLGiNW8cIVV12IbZy6Y5WmTWUwOOnXKe69Sg78y74nccj_AWnn-sPe5VapxR4ScxmF85-km5VUruuCu-cDhA1lnyDzOryc9Lk8w83wVdjOiQpi4Wcc0OPHFPNk8KIw/s320/nat-turner-slave-revolt.jpg" title="Illustration of Nat Turner Rebellion" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Illustrations about Nat Turner's Rebellion</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
To keep these insurrections in check and thus maintain the status quo, Virginia and several other southern states passed <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-literacy_laws_in_the_United_States" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">anti-literacy laws</a>. These laws were part of the sociopolitical infrastructures designed to keep African Americans, especially African American men in a sub-human category. The inability as <a href="http://paulo%20freire%20and%20donaldo%20macedo/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Paulo Freire and Donaldo Macedo</a> argued, "to read the world and the word" kept many of these slaves tethered to a dominant, exploitative culture.<br />
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<h3>
Literacy, African American Boys, and the legacy of Anti-Literacy Laws<br />
</h3>
Anti-literacy laws seem to be the relics of a shameful era. Working-class African American boys have more access to literacy than ever. If reading makes one smart, then the current generation of working-class African American boys should be among the most intelligent and literate populations in the world. But studies seem to contradict this statement. A number of socioeconomic reasons have been explored. A lack of literate and educated role models have been proposed, most recently by presidential candidate <a href="https://pjmedia.com/election/pete-buttigieg-in-2011-minority-children-dont-have-role-models-who-value-education/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Pete Buttiege</a>.<br />
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But what if the literacy problems with working-class African American boys indicate something more pervasive and insidious than poverty, apparently substandard school districts, and the lack of appropriate role models? What if the idea that a literate African American man as a threat still exists in some form in the cultural psyche of the United States? Although Barack Obama was the first African American president, his intelligence was constantly questioned by millions of Americans. His mixed-race heritage and his being raised by White grandparents may have also complicated the literate African American man as a threat image for him.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhba6o0J1l2Idn170s2Y_n5r58UddEc3m8TQEW3VXjxXZhhNK373XXsATH3zcTSmx4zcUyWyg27NE4ak5YM4niHrR0CKO3mYnNrRVF7sKSQViQxOoQ5b9ytR-_JRVuutgCnXe0HZ0xypgw/s1600/huey-and-bobby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="picture of Black Panther Party founders" border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhba6o0J1l2Idn170s2Y_n5r58UddEc3m8TQEW3VXjxXZhhNK373XXsATH3zcTSmx4zcUyWyg27NE4ak5YM4niHrR0CKO3mYnNrRVF7sKSQViQxOoQ5b9ytR-_JRVuutgCnXe0HZ0xypgw/s400/huey-and-bobby.jpg" title="Black Panther Party Founders Bobby Seale (left) and Huey Newton" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Black Panther Party founders Bobby Seale (left) and Huey Newton</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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But millions of working-class African American boys are not Barack Obama. They are not ambitious centrist politicians who want to become adored world leaders. On the contrary, some of these boys could be the next Nat Turner or Frederick Douglass. Or the next Huey Newton or Bobby Seale (founders of The Black Panther Party). They could disrupt the status quo and become the thinkers and leaders of social, political, and economic revolutions.<br />
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<b>Reading is fundamental. Reading and changing the world for the better is even more fundamental.</b>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-79168288359381335142019-12-15T23:48:00.000-05:002019-12-25T09:21:36.388-05:00Information Literacy: A Relational Approach<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhooAwQMwgDquhqJtOVWNj_2H3zYl1d7SN9y3CO3-dlPuayUM8hziBkB1PQsWc_YKgNDdJ_IhY153eZFXlq2sMEqhaABLmUvnLxrxSdN2Pn7TfrruilLrEzU8ZYP0KQyrXrpL5YVOWSP14/s1600/information-literacy.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="365" data-original-width="580" height="201" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhooAwQMwgDquhqJtOVWNj_2H3zYl1d7SN9y3CO3-dlPuayUM8hziBkB1PQsWc_YKgNDdJ_IhY153eZFXlq2sMEqhaABLmUvnLxrxSdN2Pn7TfrruilLrEzU8ZYP0KQyrXrpL5YVOWSP14/s320/information-literacy.PNG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>In the following essay, I share something I learned about information and information literacy from working with hundreds of college students and from working with dozens of "underserved" urban students. This post is a bit long, but I hope it sparks a discussion among us about information and information literacy. Please forgive me if this topic already </i></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>has </i></span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><i>been widely discussed in the literature, during conferences, or in the classroom.</i></span><br />
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I previously conducted information literacy one-shot workshops as transfers of knowledge that resulted in measurable outcomes. It didn't matter that such outcomes were relatively easy to produce or that the assessments I used almost never demonstrated a long-term impact of my teaching. I lectured. Students demonstrated a level of proficiency during or shortly after the workshop. We (the students and I) produced measurable outcomes.<br />
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However, I changed my approach when I noticed that the same students I taught perhaps a week earlier would come to the reference desk, using the same information-seeking behavior they used prior to the workshop. They would type phrases and sentences into the library's discovery tool as if it were Google. I wasn't surprised because I didn't expect a one-shot information literacy session to change student assumptions about the nature of information and how to find and use it. From what I observed from hundreds of college students at two Midwestern universities, students tend to think of information and data as "things" to be found, manipulated, and exploited. We librarians further emphasize the "thingness" of information by teaching information literacy as discrete skills that result in measurable outcomes. <br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rMKy75usVIMAWcy4REO_DECaHyPfMYl35WhoxIyPpsixM7ECVRG_eELx5fgh9Z-MnYC5mGKBiCU5K88xzsesZapWRxM7x8pCtG9b1FS1IUPTM9b8BoRDH7LWnwgCQHCz9xmp284HWQc/s1600/relationships.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="295" data-original-width="866" height="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0rMKy75usVIMAWcy4REO_DECaHyPfMYl35WhoxIyPpsixM7ECVRG_eELx5fgh9Z-MnYC5mGKBiCU5K88xzsesZapWRxM7x8pCtG9b1FS1IUPTM9b8BoRDH7LWnwgCQHCz9xmp284HWQc/s320/relationships.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Relationship as Core of Human Existence</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>But what if information isn't a thing, but a relationship? </b></blockquote>
Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann (1966) noted that reality is socially constructed. That is, they suggested that knowledge and information are social products, the results of specific types of relationships. More recently psychologist Kenneth Gergen (1994, 2009) suggested that relationships are the core of being human. We know who we are because of the relationships we have with others. Synthesizing Gergen's theory with Berger and Luckmann's framework, I argue that Information isn't something outside of human relationships. It is the relationship itself. Information is the connection between two or more people. Information is information because of human interactions. By extension, information literacy is the ability to effectively participate in these relationships. <br />
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A relational approach transforms information from examining things to investigating relationships within a community. Can I trust that person and therefore risk a connection with that person? What are my ethical responsibilities to the community as I participate in the research enterprise? More importantly, a relational approach extends students' real-life experiences of personal relationships to the realm of the scholarly community. As such, plagiarism is no longer an abstract topic about things, but about the more concrete reality of relationships--like the relationships students already have with family, friends, romantic partners, and co-workers.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8q6VnkOc0YvVLE6C8gSmJgDWQqUN0o2GRfhKxxJDzrxl2PcQywLAs7TSyl3-FtXarEIX4bQ0mPu2VEZXgyNPVcKjm8NI2PoPh_E9kb8zH9SRWv9BBu4KeG34kQhmUXtusckcLLS1DKmc/s1600/classroom-university-of-minnesota.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="1305" height="125" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8q6VnkOc0YvVLE6C8gSmJgDWQqUN0o2GRfhKxxJDzrxl2PcQywLAs7TSyl3-FtXarEIX4bQ0mPu2VEZXgyNPVcKjm8NI2PoPh_E9kb8zH9SRWv9BBu4KeG34kQhmUXtusckcLLS1DKmc/s320/classroom-university-of-minnesota.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Information Literacy as Relationship</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Unfortunately, I never had a chance to test my relational approach in a college classroom. But I did recently work with about 32 urban 8th-graders who were largely working-class African Americans. I modeled information as a relationship between students, their colleagues, scholars, their teachers, and the world outside the school. Within this specific nexus of relationships, I respected students' lived experiences and histories. In other words, I acknowledged that these students' different types of native information (relationships) and attempted to bridge those to the curriculum (schooling or school relationships). There were measurable outcomes that lasted more than a week because students connected new information (relationships) with old information (prior relationships). Information literacy was no longer an artifice to forget once the class was over. It was a crossing of a threshold, a change of assumptions about the nature, evaluation, and use of information. <br />
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<b>SOURCES</b><br />
<div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;">
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Berger, P. & Luckmann, T. (1966). <i>The social construction of reality: A treatise in the social construction of reality</i>. Garden City, NY: Anchor Books.<br />
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Gergen, K. (1994). <i>Realities and relationships: Soundings in social construction</i>. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.<br />
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Gergen, K. (2009). <i>Relational being: Beyond self and community</i>. Oxford, UK & New York: Oxford University Press.</div>
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<b>Image Credits</b><br />
<div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;">
Information Literacy<br />
Retrieved from <a href="https://upslis.info/index.php/news/98-information-literacy-seminar" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://upslis.info/index.php/news/98-information-literacy-seminar </a><br />
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Relationships<br />
Retrieved from <a href="https://aceofjacks.com/inspirationalyourelaionships">https://aceofjacks.com/inspirationalyourelaionships</a><br />
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Teacher and Students:<br />
Retrieved from <a href="https://cla.umn.edu/aaas/undergraduate" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://cla.umn.edu/aaas/undergraduate </a></div>
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The use of images and texts is in accordance with the fair use section of <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/17/107" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">17 U.S. Code § 107</a>.Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-2424010902121446732015-02-27T16:53:00.003-05:002015-09-02T11:18:14.256-04:00Celebrating a Third Work Anniversary<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCz5373YEBNX50xIXkDVyXfnnWPBdKPqd5oXwBHZneTKUgABYZieTcQuvmLvQyPquS7Y7sr_lzOeFGDBoRQQvUb_JwbUp7R4EjkG2oJQ2j6bfsHO1DivTaCwEtA36e71bCBhr2-JeIjc/s1600/3rd-annivesary-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Third anniversary image" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCz5373YEBNX50xIXkDVyXfnnWPBdKPqd5oXwBHZneTKUgABYZieTcQuvmLvQyPquS7Y7sr_lzOeFGDBoRQQvUb_JwbUp7R4EjkG2oJQ2j6bfsHO1DivTaCwEtA36e71bCBhr2-JeIjc/s1600/3rd-annivesary-300x300.jpg" style="cursor: move;" title="Happy Anniversary image" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy Work Anniversary!</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #ffe599;"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">February</span></span></span> is African American Celebration month, and it also happens to be my 3rd anniversary working as a lecturer at Oakland University Libraries. It has been an honor to serve the information needs of a highly diverse population of students, staff, and faculty. Every moment has challenged me to be the best librarian to I can be.<br />
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I am proud to work with colleagues who appreciate the diverse ideas and techniques I bring to the OU Libraries table. Recently, I helped curate a virtual exhibition on this history of diversity at Oakland University. I also helped pick items for the African American Celebration month display in our lobby. My working-class African American background has allowed me to create authentic, exciting moments in the classroom. For the most part, students and their instructors seem to enjoy my one-shot instruction sessions. There is superficial diversity, and then there is the deep, structural diversity that I have experienced at Oakland University. <br />
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Currently, I am working on several digital learning objects, including a module in Moodle, the University's learning management system. In the next several months, I will research and draft at least one article for a peer-reviewed library journal. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7czoKeL7aTsNujNjpy81nbX5bySzZZMU1O2yZ0keqcKFeAGe3qMEEM9YWQGT_QH6I0oMSV5ML4oWE6z7zMzvkxcx6MhvkdiMYevT12RT_BiXlcs47RN5EANbMhXbpXVBrkDvFMkQZKzc/s1600/reading_empowerment_image.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="Picture of an African american woman with books" border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7czoKeL7aTsNujNjpy81nbX5bySzZZMU1O2yZ0keqcKFeAGe3qMEEM9YWQGT_QH6I0oMSV5ML4oWE6z7zMzvkxcx6MhvkdiMYevT12RT_BiXlcs47RN5EANbMhXbpXVBrkDvFMkQZKzc/s1600/reading_empowerment_image.jpg" title="literacy image" width="320" /></a><br />
I start a doctoral program in Reading Education this fall. I have been in contact with a potential adviser, whose research interests meshes very well with mine. Even before the start of the semester, this professor has given me very excellent advise. I see a very productive collaboration with this person. How productive, you may ask? I think I can complete the program in four years or less, in large part by collaborating with this professor.<br />
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Last, but by no means the least, I curated a <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/aalibrarians/ferguson-shooting/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Pinterest page</a> for the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. The page features images connected to the fatal shooting of African American teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. I hope to collaborate with BCALA on other projects.<br />
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<b><u>Images</u></b><br />
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Happy 3rd Anniversary<br />
<a href="http://tlburriss.com/2012/03/11/happy-3rd-anniversary/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://tlburriss.com/2012/03/11/happy-3rd-anniversary/ </a><br />
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Literacy is Empowerment <br />
<a href="http://education.ufl.edu/reading-education/online-masters-reading-language-and-literacy/">http://education.ufl.edu/reading-education/online-masters-reading-language-and-literacy/</a><br />
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<br />Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com1Rochester, MI, USA42.680588 -83.13382139999998842.633902 -83.214502399999986 42.727274 -83.05314039999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-33119023205195285882015-02-24T20:57:00.000-05:002015-02-24T20:58:46.150-05:00Black (Librarians) History Month: E. J. Josey<b><i>NOTE: This article was originally posted on February 3, 2013. Two years later, it still holds true.</i></b> <br />
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February is Black History Month--a time to reflect on historically significant African Americans who have made equally significant social and political contributions to the United States. This month we repeatedly hear about Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, W.E.B. Du Bois, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, and George Washington Carver.<br />
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But we usually don't hear about African Americans librarians who have made significant contributions to librarianship and beyond. Elonnie Junius Josey, Edward Christopher Williams, Regina Andrews, Arnaud Bontemps, and Sadie Peterson Delaney broke the color line in librarianship and transformed the profession. They were, as Library of Congress research Julius Jefferson noted, the "culture keepers" (Pesca, 2008). They went beyond collecting and curating books. They actively promoted diversifying the profession.<br />
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This blog entry will briefly focus on Josey.<br />
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E.J. Josey, a co-founder of the Black Caucus of the American Library Association, wrote many books and articles championing professional multiculturalism. Josey is the librarians' Martin Luther King. He passionately and endlessly battle discrimination within the profession (E.J. Josey). He was a civil right activist, in every sense of the phrase. He understood the political and social ramifications of a largely White profession that served increasingly diverse patron populations. He was not afraid to step out of the dark stacks into the brights lights of world stage to correct this situation. <br />
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I wish I had met him before he died in 2009. I wish I had know about him before I entered library school in 2008. But like many other African Americans, my knowledge of historical African Americans was limited to those who were celebrated during Black History Month.<br />
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<b>I don't remember E. J. Josey ever being mentioned.</b><br />
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So, let's remember these forgotten librarian heroes. Take time this month to Google their names (Yes, a librarian recommended "Google"). Discover how they advanced librarianship and encouraged many people of color to enter the profession. These librarians may not have marched on Washington or refused to give up their seats on a segregated bus system. But their contributions to librarianship are no less political and thus no less significant than our usual Black History Month heroes.<br />
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<b>REFERENCES</b><br />
<div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;">
E. J. Josey. (2003). Retrieved from <a href="http://sis.pitt.edu/~ejjosey">http://sis.pitt.edu/~ejjosey</a><br />
Pesca, M. (Interviewer), Jefferson, J. (Interviewee). (2008). "Endangered species": Black male librarian. [Interview Transcript]. Retrieved <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=91955374">http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=91955374</a></div>
Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-29205625390574413542014-12-29T19:21:00.000-05:002014-12-29T19:22:18.940-05:00Curating a Diversity Exhibition<br />
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSmb-IZ3W_W34UyipqYyiCVQWOE-5wbquKEebFWcsCiApPbUwkEjndP6GP1T3CmsTW_6Ht36FOpJdD210a1o_hE7zDWpxgy21r1VxNJSmkiVdTwytH8BHPmHiEy-2NotJSHgTO2tqW07E/s1600/diversity_graphic.jpg" height="140" width="320" /></div>
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A few months ago, I curated a virtual exhibition about the <a href="http://library.oakland.edu/archives/ou_diversity/" target="_blank">history of diversity</a> at my institution, Oakland University. Founded in 1959 by Matilda Dodge Wilson, Oakland University has continuously pursued a diversity agenda for over 50 years. Oakland University Archives is replete with photographs and other documents that illustrate this very compelling diversity narrative.<br />
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This was my first (but hopefully not my last) venture into Archives and Special Collections. I'm not a trained archivist. I don't know the technicalities of processing archives collections. I hardly knew archives terminology. But I was immediately impressed by the sheer number of artifacts and by the unknown origins of many photographs. I had entered a foreign land, and I became a much better information specialist for having visited it. <br />
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I am proud to have curated this exhibit. I chose and scanned the documents. I added entries to the timeline. I created metadata. But this project wouldn't have come to fruition without the extensive help of library colleagues and university stakeholders, including librarians Barbara Shipman, Julia Pope, Nicole Lane, and Rachel Dineen; archives assistant Shirley Paquette and archives coordinator Professor Dominique Daniel. I received much help from the <a href="http://oakland.edu/cmi" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Center for Multicultural Initiatives</a> and <a href="http://www.oakland.edu/?id=25315&sid=288" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Professor De Witt S. Dykes, Jr</a>.<br />
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For more information about Oakland University Archives, please visit this <a href="http://library.oakland.edu/archives/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">site</a>.<br />
<br />Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-64068601271467939932014-10-18T10:22:00.000-04:002014-10-18T10:22:58.079-04:00Personal Inventories and that Librarianship ThingOnce a month I take inventory of my personal space. I often find misplaced items, like important business cards, telephone numbers, and other scraps of data. I frequently discover things that are no longer useful, like old shaving blades and bits of soap.<br />
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After I complete this inventory, I rearrange the important things for better access and dispose redundant items.<br />
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That's the librarian in me. Organizing relevant things for access and weeding other things that no longer serve a purpose in my personal space. Yeah, I am in the right profession.Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-26424196979784112272014-09-09T12:09:00.000-04:002014-09-11T11:40:11.788-04:00Librarians: The Ultimate Search Engine<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/all/files/content/campaign/print-ready/ultimate-ad.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/all/files/content/campaign/print-ready/ultimate-ad.gif" height="320" width="219" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image 1.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Librarians: the Ultimate Search Engine! How many times have we seen librarians compared to sophisticated online search engines like Bing or Google? Only better! Even the American Library Association seems to <a href="http://www.ala.org/educationcareers/careers/paths/childrenyouth" target="_blank">co-opt this tag line</a>. <br />
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I'm an academic librarian, a highly trained information professional who, among many other things, help people build an active relationship with information and data. What does "active relationship" mean? It means questioning the dominant social, political, and economic assumptions that often shape the creation and dissemination of information, especially in late-capitalist cultures. It translates to comparing the validity of even the most "objective" and "reliable" information against lived experiences. In short, I help patrons recognize the epistemic validity of their own observations and experiences. I show them how their own lived experiences may serve as excellent introductions to scholarly conversations.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://upstartpromotions.com/images/full/Librarians-The-Ultimate-Search-HSL_i_H11109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://upstartpromotions.com/images/full/Librarians-The-Ultimate-Search-HSL_i_H11109.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image 2.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Even the most sophisticated search algorithms cannot do that...at least not yet. Google and other search engines are superb at finding relevant and not so relevant information. These online tools may even, as Purdy and Walker suggests, even help people make connections among disparate ideas. It may help them become "inventive". But these tools do not seem to engender critical thinking. In the context of this post, "critical thinking" is synonymous with "active relationship". <br />
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Does this mean I want to abolish online search engines and return to a totally print-based research model? Of course not. But until scientists invent affective and intellectual computers that can enable affective and intellectual relationships with information, I and other librarians cannot be compared to a search engine--no matter how sophisticated search engine algorithms may appear.<br />
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<b>SOURCES</b><br />
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<div style="margin-left: 3.4em; text-indent: -3.4em;">American Library Association. (2014). The ultimate search engine could be you! Accessed 8 September 2014 from <a href="http://www.ala.org/educationcareers/careers/paths/childrenyouth">http://www.ala.org/educat</a><a href="http://www.ala.org/educationcareers/careers/paths/childrenyouth">ioncareers/careers/paths/childrenyouth</a></div><br />
<div style="margin-left: 3.4em; text-indent: -3.4em;">Purdy, J. & Walker J. (2007). Digital breadcrumbs: Case studies of online research. <span style="font-style: italic;">Kairos</span> 11.2, Accessed 8 September 2014 from <a href="http://kairos.technorhetoric.net/11.2/binder.html?topoi/purdy-walker/index.htm" target="_blank">kairos.technorhetoric.net/11.2/binder.html?topoi/purdy-walker/index.htm</a></div><br />
<b>IMAGES</b><br />
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<div style="margin-left: 3.4em; text-indent: -3.4em;">Image 1. The ultimate search engine is @ your library. Accessed 8 September 2014 from <a href="http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/all/files/content/campaign/print-ready/ultimate-ad.gif">http://www.ala.org/advocacy/sites/all/files/content/campaign/print-ready/ultimate-ad.gif</a></div><br />
<div style="margin-left: 3.4em; text-indent: -3.4em;">Image 2. Librarians: The ultimate search engine. Accessed 8 September 2014 from <a href="http://upstartpromotions.com/images/full/Librarians-The-Ultimate-Search-HSL_i_H11109.jpg">http://upstartpromotions.com/images/full/Librarians-The-Ultimate-Search-HSL_i_H11109.jpg</a></div><br />
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Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com1Rochester, MI, USA42.680588 -83.13382139999998842.633902 -83.214502399999986 42.727274 -83.05314039999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-32848480922225467722014-08-24T21:48:00.001-04:002014-08-24T21:48:53.885-04:00From the Archives<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPUqvdQv7HYYC95Rw5IJnvhVepbRze3oSF5y9318sDBS2ZxUsSKPlzaInztqCYqZ5TPs6bIJidLzWr5C_MvEEcOxhO6ke8XWUj-6VFVBF9XyE_rpLA2vj9X_DCcdmI9A4qqmhfxGIZFu0/s1600/archivesnat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image of archives" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPUqvdQv7HYYC95Rw5IJnvhVepbRze3oSF5y9318sDBS2ZxUsSKPlzaInztqCYqZ5TPs6bIJidLzWr5C_MvEEcOxhO6ke8XWUj-6VFVBF9XyE_rpLA2vj9X_DCcdmI9A4qqmhfxGIZFu0/s1600/archivesnat.jpg" height="212" title="Elegant Archves" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image 1.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As I mentioned previously, I am currently curating a virtual exhibition on the history of diversity at my institution, Oakland University. Since last February, several colleagues and I have collaborated on this project. I focused on archival material: photographs, letters, newspaper clippings, and other materials that represent the University's efforts to create a diverse and welcoming environment.<br />
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Before this project, I never considered archives "political". I simply thought of them as neutral and objective collections of items unique to a specific institution. But as I work on this exhibit, I realize that my personal biases and political preferences tend to "color" the direction of the exhibit. For instance, I tend to focus on the history of African Americans at Oakland University.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8eE9uQCbhXKXf4KQCAecKQSxb_m2nY4fAGag3CzV3WEQ3dfjOxJJsOv91zJfsZ07HGcxBcKf_D21E2pTqBybj2Fi7EFXpuCEPzTkBabbaM0sZQfhF7TNGR_b4C3OiVPCqFyArWNDZzqk/s1600/archiv.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image of African American Archives" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8eE9uQCbhXKXf4KQCAecKQSxb_m2nY4fAGag3CzV3WEQ3dfjOxJJsOv91zJfsZ07HGcxBcKf_D21E2pTqBybj2Fi7EFXpuCEPzTkBabbaM0sZQfhF7TNGR_b4C3OiVPCqFyArWNDZzqk/s1600/archiv.gif" height="145" title="African American Archives Slave Narratives" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image 2.</td></tr>
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I rationalized this decision to the project manager by stating that much (if not most) of the diversity material I found seemed focused on this population. This is not surprising. Oakland University is less than 6 miles northeast of Pontiac and about 35 mile northwest of Detroit, two areas with dense African American populations. During its initial decade (1959-1969), Oakland University largely targeted this population for admissions and employment.<br />
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This is not to say that other demographics (sexual orientation, national origin, gender, etc) were ignored. Many documents in the archives demonstrate Oakland University's commitment to various types of diversity. I have included numerous documents about these demographics to balance out the exhibition.<br />
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Nonetheless, I wonder if my personal identity politics "skewed" the exhibition. I frequently question my choices. Does the exhibition truly represent the University's diversity efforts or does it largely represent my interpretation of those efforts? Perhaps formally trained and experienced archivists ask themselves similar questions about their own projects. <br />
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Image 1. <a href="http://alanwdowd.com/Admin/spaw2/dialogs/img/archivesnat.jpg">http://alanwdowd.com/Admin/spaw2/dialogs/img/archivesnat.jpg</a><br />
Image 2. <a href="http://www.lfpl.org/western/gifs/archiv.gif">http://www.lfpl.org/western/gifs/archiv.gif</a><br />
<br />Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-78259961358205059132014-07-31T14:54:00.001-04:002014-07-31T14:54:27.175-04:00The Long Hiatus<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsbM8ptPXtHO5amE2MuNdcb7eTOpAVBhX9BnJNFUQ5oPjkfjn8gSeOaMFhLitL5t5vgYnFZEpRxHuo7FNDJhY45cp2Rv4plUtP7EqY7AHv02scQjWdgHSIUirNVOQ0nssOKg-8EIe5V4/s1600/red_librarian_sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrsbM8ptPXtHO5amE2MuNdcb7eTOpAVBhX9BnJNFUQ5oPjkfjn8gSeOaMFhLitL5t5vgYnFZEpRxHuo7FNDJhY45cp2Rv4plUtP7EqY7AHv02scQjWdgHSIUirNVOQ0nssOKg-8EIe5V4/s1600/red_librarian_sign.jpg" height="320" width="280" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The name plate says it all: L.I.B.R.A.R.I.AN</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I apologize for a very long hiatus. I want to think that I have gone through an "existential dilemma" or a mid-life crisis for the last 7 months. The truth is that I have been too lazy to write blog entries, despite completing two of my goals. I successfully applied to the Reading Education doctoral program at Oakland University. I started my own business and have one client so far. Now...to market my skills and expand my client base.<br />
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<b>Life is good.</b><br />
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At work, I'm currently working on several projects. Although I am no archivist and have not archives training, I am doing archival research to compile an Oakland University diversity timeline. A virtual archives exhibition, this project focuses on the key people and events that shaped diversity and inclusiveness at the University.<br />
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Although I tend to focus on African Americans, who were the target population of many University diversity efforts, I include other ethnic groups (Native Americans, Asian Americans, Whites, and International Students) and diversity categories (sexual orientation and gender). <br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxV2_cSb8dsOX5k5yAusC0uqYJLss219LYkVvv6SKN58bmkgor2ZUYemKNqINYkuqU0XipnIRl8j28qybvq2h2zC70HLsu8J-L9R3FgC1YtDoXmiXqcRpkrajkNUHm7f6yx7JqjYvG-E/s1600/solider_with_books.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMxV2_cSb8dsOX5k5yAusC0uqYJLss219LYkVvv6SKN58bmkgor2ZUYemKNqINYkuqU0XipnIRl8j28qybvq2h2zC70HLsu8J-L9R3FgC1YtDoXmiXqcRpkrajkNUHm7f6yx7JqjYvG-E/s1600/solider_with_books.jpg" height="320" width="318" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The above also applies to archivists.</td></tr>
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Having reviewed many photographs with no metadata (Date, Title, Location, etc), I give much respect to archivists. I have done some research to complete this timeline, but not the type of extensive research I imagine archivists do on a daily basis.<br />
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I have never curated an archives exhibition before. This challenging experience has inspired me to think about going back to school for a post-MLIS archives certificate. I definitely want to do more archives-related projects.<br />
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I have developed several skills being the main curator of this project. I have learned how to develop and organize metadata, create and implement artifact selection criteria, and manage various media formats. The most important skill I honed is probably collaboration with diverse colleagues. I have learned to actively engage the expertise and wisdom of my colleagues.<br />
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I constantly conduct research for my scholarly article. I hope to have a publishable manuscript by April 2015.<br />
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Until next time....which will not be another 7 months.Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com1Rochester, MI, USA42.680588 -83.13382139999998842.633902 -83.214502399999986 42.727274 -83.05314039999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-91840164834773039462013-12-31T13:05:00.000-05:002014-04-03T16:34:05.093-04:00Holiday Greetings and 2014 Goals<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0C0ErBGFc1VG3cQ80QRzTPvK3ziwF5c4hfxSiLQOJD6_DtObyNTdx036w02tD7tzikfN3huWw-pTj2dFX4Qzp2I5NE9gPVAbIkqg4JnY53HCp8AOguUVK_erUuvEo6WuNsogB6MMC0MU/s1600/goals.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0C0ErBGFc1VG3cQ80QRzTPvK3ziwF5c4hfxSiLQOJD6_DtObyNTdx036w02tD7tzikfN3huWw-pTj2dFX4Qzp2I5NE9gPVAbIkqg4JnY53HCp8AOguUVK_erUuvEo6WuNsogB6MMC0MU/s1600/goals.jpg" height="149" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image 1.</td></tr>
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Happy Holidays!<br />
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This holiday season and my 50th birthday have prompted me to examine my professional goals. Because I believe that being an African American male librarian is somewhat "radical," I still have professional goals that the support my mission: to encourage patrons to establish critical relationships with information and the information economy.<br />
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In other words, I think being a librarian means more than providing access to information or finding the right answers for patrons. I think librarians are collaborators. Public library librarians collaborate with their community to provide spaces and expertise that enhance the social, political, and economic status of community members. Academic librarians collaborate with students, staff, and faculty to help create and disseminate new information (research) and to support other educational goals.<br />
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Within that context, I have several goals for 2014. This list isn't complete.<br />
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<b>1.</b> <b>EDUCATION </b><br />
I will enter a doctoral program in Education. I think the tools I gain from earning a doctorate will enhance my information literacy sessions. My teaching methods will most likely improve because I will learn different theories about teaching and learning. I may even parlay this credential with the third goal below.<br />
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<b>2. SCHOLARLY PUBLISHING </b><br />
I will publish at least one article. Although this isn't an official requirement for my present position, I think publishing at least one article in a peer-reviewed journal will help establish my professional reputation and allow me to extend my ideas beyond this blog.<br />
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<b>3. ENTREPRENEURSHIP </b><br />
I will become a part-time independent contractor. I think I have the skills to make money during the thing I love: research and business consultations. Of course, I have to research the market and discover ways to distinguish myself from potential competitors. But I think I can do just that.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZKwMcsIPGk9ZRb8Ln5-xIgBWlGg5SxN5Iav1wk-fgsaH8Wa9CttOxnGWnjzayzRYTPWQrER6q8X3MKqnT32COIirwaWPKczXkPFRFjDphKOCcclE533YiokeGtgcsc5-VTcVOxneq9aQ/s1600/goals2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZKwMcsIPGk9ZRb8Ln5-xIgBWlGg5SxN5Iav1wk-fgsaH8Wa9CttOxnGWnjzayzRYTPWQrER6q8X3MKqnT32COIirwaWPKczXkPFRFjDphKOCcclE533YiokeGtgcsc5-VTcVOxneq9aQ/s1600/goals2.jpg" height="149" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image 2.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I don't think these are overly ambitious professional goals. I think it is a matter of creating objectives that facilitate this goals.<br />
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<b>2014 looks very promising.</b><br />
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Images use is in accordance with United States Copyright laws. I do not claim ownership to any image.<br />
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Image 1: <a href="http://delsurfoundation.org/goals/">http://delsurfoundation.org/goals/</a><br />
Image 2: <a href="http://strategyleadershipmissionimpact.blogspot.com/2012/04/goal-setting-primer.html">http://strategyleadershipmissionimpact.blogspot.com/2012/04/goal-setting-primer.html</a>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-28000157925862179552013-12-20T17:58:00.001-05:002013-12-20T18:17:16.120-05:00The Half Century Mark or A Long Time to Discover One's Calling<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7lbkWw58ztlIOD84r38qqDVgA3f7d7sBppVfI_pO2pdW-iKCMTFvTKZq28WIT2bluVe0jrTGBv6uJdRQeirsm0Z1b0UcqNFwVh8HwiFFK4pgB2zjPhCJIS1mByPvzHsXdxD-7MTickB4/s1600/Picture+8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7lbkWw58ztlIOD84r38qqDVgA3f7d7sBppVfI_pO2pdW-iKCMTFvTKZq28WIT2bluVe0jrTGBv6uJdRQeirsm0Z1b0UcqNFwVh8HwiFFK4pgB2zjPhCJIS1mByPvzHsXdxD-7MTickB4/s200/Picture+8.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selfie taken 12/20/2013 at 5:45pm</td></tr>
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Today is my birthday. My 50th birthday. I have officially been a member of Club Earth for 50 good years, and it has only been within the last 5 years that I discovered I was a librarian.<br />
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That's a very long time, isn't it?<br />
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Instead of calling myself "An African American Male Librarian," I should call myself "The Grandma Moses Librarian". <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandma_Moses" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Grandma Moses</a> was the nickname for <span class="st">Anna Mary Robertson Moses, a folk artist who started who art career in her late 70s. <span style="font-size: x-small;">1 </span></span><br />
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<span class="st">Unlike that of Grandma Moses, I don't expect people to celebrate my late entry into a profession. I hope that I may inspire other Black man (especially the younger ones) to enter librarianship. I also hope that my blog encourage my colleagues to "transgress" their professional and personal comfort zones to advance librarianship. If this blog influences one young Black man to enter the professor or encourages one colleague to change their perspective about being a librarian, I will consider it to have completed its mission. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8KXHuHIlABkJzElwkprNFHMHMiLDlcPcNeyOlrbRaFAcTbjE9mM_U9b-JGDeHgcEAmX9vxsLl1HyFF6HhgvZ-_0zkZANhmr-j2PvY2r_BatMPZwxdR6EY2ijJhQC3OnPeGu_Ha2sLtU/s1600/Picture+11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW8KXHuHIlABkJzElwkprNFHMHMiLDlcPcNeyOlrbRaFAcTbjE9mM_U9b-JGDeHgcEAmX9vxsLl1HyFF6HhgvZ-_0zkZANhmr-j2PvY2r_BatMPZwxdR6EY2ijJhQC3OnPeGu_Ha2sLtU/s200/Picture+11.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Selfie taken 12/20/2013 at 5:44pm</td></tr>
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<span class="st">Today is my 50th birthday. On this special day, I do the very thing I love: being a librarian who serves the information needs of my patrons by helping them form more critically and socially aware relationships with information.</span><br />
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<b><span class="st">That is my calling.</span></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/Och46nDFFws?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<span class="st">Before you go, please enjoy this video. It features Andrew P. Jackson, whom I believe was a </span><span class="st"><span data-dobid="hdw">protégé</span> of the E. J. Josey, speaking about a recent anthology on Black librarians, <i>The 21st-Century Black Librarian in America: Issues and Challenges</i>. This excellent monograph features the ongoing triumphs and challenges of many Black Librarian in the United States.</span><br />
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<span class="st">Happy Holidays to all! See you next week.</span><br />
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<span class="st">Links</span><br />
<span class="st">1. Grandma Moses Wikipedia Entry: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandma_Moses">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandma_Moses</a> </span>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0Auburn Hills, MI, USA42.6875323 -83.23410280000001642.5941233 -83.395464300000015 42.7809413 -83.072741300000018tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-44369001936058325242013-12-14T10:42:00.002-05:002013-12-14T10:42:41.873-05:00Si Se Puede or Librarians Can Do ThatOn December 13, 2013 (yes, Friday the 13th), I had a very wonderful interview with the President and Vice President of a local company. During the interview, I argued that a trained librarian was the perfect solution for their company information needs. They needed someone who could redesign their information systems, which include re-organizing their file systems, designing and implementing database solutions, and re-organizing their website. They also needed someone who could train employees to maintain this system. In other words, they need someone who could manage relatively large projects that would grow their company.<br />
<br />
I argued that a trained librarian could do that and more. In school, I was trained to actually diagram and build databases. In Visio, I visually represented relationships among various data, using the business rules that informed those relationships. For instance, if I were to design a database about clients and workshops, I would sketch the relationship between the two entities. Can each client attend many workshops. Does each workshop have many clients? If so I would create diagrams that would reflect those relations. After that, I would use Access or any other database software to build an electronic database (I say "electronic" because a database is technically a collection of related records. Access, and Oracle are software packages that manage databases. They are not databases <i>per se</i>.). I briefly explained that during the interview.<br />
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I also explained how we librarians are passionate about serving others by organizing and providing access to information. I really focused on our being passionate about our profession. We do not simply go to jobs. We engage our passion for excellent service within our community. I even explained my passion for changing people's relationship with information. They liked that response because they wanted someone with a passion for serving their clients' needs. They didn't want someone who simply wanted a job.<br />
<br />
In short, the President and Vice President seemed highly impressed by what librarians can do, outside of libraries. I demonstrated that when CEOs need information solutions that will help grow their companies, they SHOULD immediately think of trained librarians.<br />
<br />
We are INFORMATION professionals, right?<br />
<br />
Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-32527162864899268832013-12-05T20:29:00.001-05:002013-12-05T20:33:15.538-05:00The Death of Nelson Mandela and the Potential for African American Male Librarians<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXOtCZ39VCgOkoR5aFtQmFrLGcs3sgsXzLcJ0f40KREQ0ief8Q2VgHTqq3WOtgWnyXNrpsy0qWPYutuq-4pWvrpddWaTFNWOtf_zWCflMyFKQsAkb5MCfx2k8-uKj9rzNN593IbQq7ivY/s1600/mandela_obit_640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXOtCZ39VCgOkoR5aFtQmFrLGcs3sgsXzLcJ0f40KREQ0ief8Q2VgHTqq3WOtgWnyXNrpsy0qWPYutuq-4pWvrpddWaTFNWOtf_zWCflMyFKQsAkb5MCfx2k8-uKj9rzNN593IbQq7ivY/s320/mandela_obit_640.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Late Great Nelson Mandela</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Nelson Mandela passed away recently, and the media buzzes with praises and celebrations of a man who lived a courageous, magnificent life dedicated to social justice and peace. I will not even try to compete with the more eloquent statements about this great man.<br />
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But I will say this.<br />
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Mr. Mandela is a great role model for many African American male librarians, especially the young ones just graduating from library school or thinking about joining the profession. Mandela was not afraid, as an old Nigerian friend often advises to "live his truth,"especially if that truth caused him personal pain. He wasn't afraid to fight the social wrongs, even if that fight meant that he would spend almost 30 years of his life in prison.<br />
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How does Mr. Mandela's life connect with African American male librarians? Every African American men live a certain truth, regardless of economic, social, or political status.<br />
<br />
WE <br />
<br />
We are often hated and feared. Our bodies are often regulated through the penal code system. And many of us live in a symbolic prison where the guards constantly use statistics and other evidence to remind us that we are intellectually "less" than our white counterparts.<br />
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WE ARE AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN.<br />
<br />
WE ARE LIBRARIANS.<br />
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Unfortunately, librarianship seems to suffer from its own form of apartheid--even as diversity initiatives struggle to diversify the profession. Remember that African American men make up less than one-half of one percent of all librarians, according to ALA statistics. While the ALA cautions against interpreting their numbers as absolute, they also note that these figures remind us of this population continues to be significantly less than the majority of credential librarians.<br />
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In this context, we cannot afford to simply make a comfortable career. We can do so much more than providing "good service" to our patrons. Like Nelson Mandela in the political world of South Africa, we can show that African and African American men can make great and positive impacts in the equally political world of librarianship.<br />
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Of course, we don't expect most African American male librarians to spend 27 years in prison because of their convictions. That's unrealistic for the vast majority of African American men, including librarians. But we should expect African American male librarians to do something so radically different, so surprising--as to cause a virtual sea-change in librarianship. Yes, we serve our patrons. But this service should be informed by the same passion for social justice that carried Mr. Mandela through his 27 years in a South African prison.<br />
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How can this passion manifest itself in our daily lives? Instead of providing simple access to information, we can facilitate a radically different relationship with information, one that starts with the innate intellectual capacities of our patrons. We can show that information is the process of being shaped and shaping the world around us. We can show that information is neither simply a commodity to bought and sold nor a thing to find for a research project. We can help patrons question the creation and dissemination of information against their own lived experiences.<br />
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We should do this in honor of Mr. Mandela, and equally important because <br />
<br />
WE ARE AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN.<br />
<br />
WE ARE LIBRARIANS.<br />
<b> </b><br />
<br />
<b>CREDITS</b><br />
American Library Association. (2012). Diversity counts: Update 2009-2010. <a href="http://www.ala.org/offices/diversity/diversitycounts/2009-2010update">http://www.ala.org/offices/diversity/diversitycounts/2009-2010update</a> <br />
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Picture of Nelson Mandela (nd). Fox News. <a href="http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/fn2/video/640/360/032813_mandela_obit_640.jpg">http://a57.foxnews.com/global.fncstatic.com/static/managed/img/fn2/video/640/360/032813_mandela_obit_640.jpg</a><br />
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<br />Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-21202841858377904272013-11-29T21:49:00.004-05:002013-12-01T16:30:35.930-05:00Mea Culpa from an African-American Male Librarian<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKVVDqbOqXq6HJfmjHUdrCVGS7UtE3k4wdz83CJgEQFYd3jKXsPv7hweKV23xZVm-Jj2leBJQzaz1dEXj3fGszQ6qBuNekhyphenhyphenY-Mr2sl25UTvlP49ICGlLwF1IGx1D9j2ShHJxLS1JACgQ/s1600/johnnie_blunt_self_portrait_monochrome.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKVVDqbOqXq6HJfmjHUdrCVGS7UtE3k4wdz83CJgEQFYd3jKXsPv7hweKV23xZVm-Jj2leBJQzaz1dEXj3fGszQ6qBuNekhyphenhyphenY-Mr2sl25UTvlP49ICGlLwF1IGx1D9j2ShHJxLS1JACgQ/s1600/johnnie_blunt_self_portrait_monochrome.JPG" width="200" /></a><b>MEA CULPA</b> -- my bad.<br />
<br />
Four months have passed since my last post. Please forgive the long "radio silence". I will try to keep the content relatively fresh. I will try to post at least once a week.<br />
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Unlike my last post, this entry may seem very apolitical to some. I am on the last day of my Thanksgiving vacation/ early birthday celebration. Since last Tuesday, I've been vacationing in Chicago with a very old and close Nigerian friend and four other very friendly and easy-going Nigerians.<br />
<br />
I often describe myself as "African American," but my time with my African brothers prompts me to question the hyphenated identity. How African is this African-American male librarian when he often feels alienated in the presence of men from the homeland? Perhaps I should just strike through the "African" in the title of my blog: The Professional Life of an <strike>African-</strike>American Male Librarian.<br />
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But that move seems to deny my ethnic heritage. Like my Nigerian friends, I am connected to Africa, even if I cannot understand African languages and cultures. Even if I am more culturally and linguistically connected to Western Europe/ America than to Africa.<br />
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What do James Bond, Doctor Who, and Martin Luther King, Jr's "I have a Dream" speech and I have in common? We all turn 50 this year. I cannot believe that I will celebrate 50 years of living. I honestly didn't think I would make it. Then again, I never thought I would be a librarian at this age. <br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfzZRGmoGmgQUk6y7C0GDA04crltuQgd5M_huggiBRt5RL2tRYaCXByK-vjj7CJU-76trbhZS8uSL1W_UhgFerT1ylyg_X0mWGevBGvgp0SaJVTOy4olLIU1h6fc7Kp0R-kYbS1tCbZDs/s1600/mean-librarian1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfzZRGmoGmgQUk6y7C0GDA04crltuQgd5M_huggiBRt5RL2tRYaCXByK-vjj7CJU-76trbhZS8uSL1W_UhgFerT1ylyg_X0mWGevBGvgp0SaJVTOy4olLIU1h6fc7Kp0R-kYbS1tCbZDs/s1600/mean-librarian1.jpg" width="143" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Librarian Stereotype*</td></tr>
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<b>L-I-B-R-A-R-I-A-N</b><br />
<br />
And as you can see from my "selfie," I don't look anything like the stereotype on the left. That's because we librarians come in all shapes, sizes, genders, sexual orientations, etc. It's a wonderful thing.<br />
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<b>L-I-B-R-A-R-I-A-N</b><br />
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I love all the benefits and challenges of being in this profession.<b> </b>Currently, I am applying to two doctoral programs in Michigan. I want to study what impact, if any, do collaborations between embedded librarians and first year writing instructors have on first year students' academic literacies. Within the next five years, I hope to have dual appointments at a mid-size to large research university. I would love to teach upper-level writing and rhetoric classes and to coordinate library instruction.<b> </b><br />
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*Image from <a href="http://www.thedebutanteball.com/2009/11/19/">http://www.thedebutanteball.com/2009/11/19/</a>Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-6105370141903004882013-07-26T20:15:00.001-04:002013-08-04T18:24:41.551-04:00George Zimmerman Verdict, Racial Profiling, and an Incident in the Life of an African American Male LibrarianLike many other African American males, I was not stunned by the George Zimmerman "not guilty" verdict. Physical evidence supported Mr. Zimmerman's claim of self-defense. Stereotypes about the criminality and extreme violence of young African American men strengthened the "truth" of Mr. Zimmerman's story. Legally, it does not seem to matter that Trayvon Martin may have been "standing his ground" against a stranger who followed him on a dark, rainy night. Armed with a hoodie, a bag of Skittles and a soft drink, Trayvon Martin was deemed a physical threat that had to put down. <br />
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This is the image, the stereotype that every African American male librarian must contend with, whether or not they they admit it. In the aftermath of the verdict, millions of African American parents struggled to tell their sons that they could be murdered just for walking down a street and that the law may hold these young boys practically responsible for their own deaths. Unfortunately, this is part of older, broader conversations for many of these parents: if a police man stops you, do not talk back--even if the officer violates your civil rights, have both hands in plain view, do not give law enforcement officers any reason to shoot you and beat you down like a wild animal". And now this advice must be extended to neighborhood watch crews and other civilian "protectors".<br />
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So what does this have to do with me? I'm a librarian, the most non-threatening species on the planet, right? I'm old. I wear glasses. I don't look like a thug.<br />
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But that did not stop a White male law officer from rigorously questioning and ticketing me for littering in Westland, Michigan about 3 years ago. In that part of the world, littering is a misdemeanor. I paid a fine, but I still have a criminal record. This is the same officer who allowed many speeding non-African Americans off with warning. I assume he wanted to show me HE was the boss because I asked him if he were profiling me. He responded that he was tired of African Americans asking him that and those the ticket. Because it was a misdemeanor, I had to make a court appearance. I pleaded "guilty" because it was my word against his. And I knew my words would mean almost nothing against his.<br />
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The littering incident occurred within yards of my workplace--a library. The site was so covered with litter, I wondered how many times people were actually fined for the offense. There I was. Looking like Steve Urkel from <i>Family Matters</i>, while the officer checked my background for previous offenses. Not finding any, he decided a littering charge was in order. To be honest, I was guilty of throwing a candy wrapper among the other trash near the library. If I had listened to the above advice, I may have gotten away with a warning.<br />
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But I doubt it.<br />
<br />
The officer was most likely making his "quota" and my righteous indignation allowed him to do just that.<br />
<br />
My point to this story is simple. Even a homely librarian like myself isn't exempted from the negative stereotypes that contributed to Trayvon Martin's death. I wonder how many other African American male librarians how gone through racially informed situations but do not share their stories because they do not want to seem bitter and hostile.<br />
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I wonder.Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-4113626841328781682013-06-28T17:56:00.000-04:002013-06-28T17:56:46.532-04:00The Love of NetworkingI love networking. I love talking with colleagues and sharing information that benefits the entire profession. I love offering my expertise whenever I get a chance. I love being a potential solution to my colleagues' problems. That is why I love networking. It gives me an opportunity to be useful to my colleagues and to the profession as a whole.<br />
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Today, I had an excellent networking experience. I interviewed for a part-time librarian position at a local college. The interview/ conversation was fantastic. I learned much from a more experienced colleague, and I was able to articulate what exactly I could contribute to the specific library and to the profession as a whole. I hope to become a very useful part of this person's network.<br />
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My main goal in networking is to become a "name brand," the person colleagues remember when they need solutions. Career advancement is just a small part of it. My library career will most likely advance as I help my colleagues solve their problems. It's like the old saying: "Love what you do and the money will follow". I love being a solution to problems. Building a career and earning a professional salary will follow that love.<br />
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<b>WAY OFF TOPIC</b><br />
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) just effectively ended the Defense of Marriage Act and Prop 8 in California. Both laws discriminated against gay marriage. A very staunch liberal, I am happy to see what is most likely the beginning of marriage civil rights for all consenting adults, regardless of the sexual orientation. <br />
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Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-32699047766244508252013-06-21T13:43:00.000-04:002013-06-28T17:24:36.384-04:00On Being Too Picky or The Crisis among Recently Credentialed Librarians<br />
A few days ago, I participated in a linkedin discussion about recent library school graduates. The discussion question, "Are recent grads too picky?" prompted a few passionate responses. Among my comments, I posted this:<br />
<br />
<b><blockquote>Unless recent library school graduates immediately expect lucrative administrative positions in large library systems, I don't think they are being too picky. I think they want responsibilities and pay equal to their educational credentials. They want to be professionals, not paraprofessionals. They want to demonstrate that an MLIS is a professional degree, not an entry level paraprofessional certificate. Can we imagine many law students getting a JD, just to be paralegals or many medical students working for their MDs, to become nursing assistants? No.<br />
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This is not a slam against library paraprofessionals. There are many experienced library paraprofessionals who advanced their careers, who provided excellent services and innovations to libraries without having one college degree, let alone two.</blockquote></b><br />
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Due to the apparent oversupply of library school graduates, more than a few credentialed librarians take paraprofessional positions in order to stay current in the field and to pay their bills. I don't fault my peers. I worked as a student assistant at an academic library during library school and continued that position for 9 months after I received my MLIS. It helped pay the bills; it kept me current in librarianship. I met some very excellent colleagues whose advice and wisdom showed me that librarianship is the right choice for me.<br />
<br />
But those colleagues never expected me to stay in that position, no matter how beneficial it would have been for them to have an MLIS holder as a student assistant. When I was hired for my first professional position, they wished me well. When I take the next step in my career, I know that my colleagues at my current institution will bid me a fond adieu.<br />
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Was I being "too picky" when I chose a position that more closely matched my education and other credentials? I don't think so. Are many recent library graduate being too picky for applying to professional positions and forgoing paraprofessional opportunities? Are registered nurses being too picky for not applying to any job remotely associated with nursing? Librarians may not be in the same demand curve, but there is a demand for credentialed librarians--especially those who can write grants or otherwise generate revenue for their prospective institutitions. <br />
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So, no--I don't think we are too picky. We are credentialed librarians who simply want to practice the profession. <br />
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<b>Nothing more. <br />
<br />
Nothing less.</b> Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2831081312458648865.post-72782028642807969112013-06-01T12:12:00.001-04:002013-06-02T12:45:16.912-04:00Researching African American Male LibrariansI'm researching a topic for which I have a deep passion: African American male librarians. Inspired by previous work on African American librarians, especially Kaetrena Davis-Kendrick's 2009 brilliant study of African American male librarians, I want to examine if certain gender and racial stereotypes impact how they define and perform librarianship.<br />
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African American male librarians live and work in a culture that largely constructs African American males as sexually abusive, emotionally unstable, and intellectually challenged and extremely violent. Daily news reports replicate images of either angry and hyper-aggressive African American males who must be "taken down" by dominant society or clownish "honey lamb" African American males whose malapropisms apparently entertain dominant society.<br />
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I hypothesize that these social and culture contexts must inform the professional definitions and practices of many African American librarians in some way. Perhaps some African American male librarians work very hard to disprove the stereotypes. Like E. J. Josey, they may actively speak against racial informed practices that negatively impact librarianship. These librarians may strive to provide innovative services and theories that may very well insure the survival of librarianship in the 21st century. Perhaps, as Library of Congress researcher Julius Jefferson suggested, they will be the "culture keepers," who strive to conserve important artifacts of African American culture. For these African American men, librarianship is more than a service profession that provide access to information; it is a "radical practice" that facilitates civil rights and empowers marginalized cultures.<br />
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However, many African American male librarians may choose to ignore these contexts and simply provide the best professional service to their patrons. They do a good day's work and move on. For these African American male librarians, negative sexual and racial constructs are mere abstractions, academic notions that do not accurately reflect their lived experiences and that do not help them become better librarians. As such, focus on these contexts are hurdles to professional achievement.<br />
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Of course, this topic is much more complex than what I have outlined above. It will take extensive data collection and analysis to test my hypothesis. My work will be constructed from numerous books, articles, interviews, and surveys. And the data may not support my hypothesis.<br />
<br />
But my research will help bring this often invisible sector of librarians into the light. In its own small way, it may even help dominant society to see African American males as individuals and not merely stereotypes.<br />
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SOURCES<br />
<div style="padding-left: 4em; text-indent: -4em;"><p>Davis-Kendrick, K.D. (2009). The African American male librarian: Motivational factors in choosing a career in library and information science. <i>Behavioral & Social Sciences Librarian</i> 28 (1-2), 23-52.</p><br />
<p>Jefferson, J. (Interviewee) & Pesca, M. (Interviewer). (27 June 2008). Endangered species: Black male librarians. <i>The Bryant Park Project</i>. NPR. [Interview Transcript]. Retrieved from <a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=91955374">http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=91955374</a>.</p></div><br />
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Johnnie R. Blunthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11287417241948224536noreply@blogger.com3