Christmas Eve Special: NARA's new catalog, digital preservation, cemetery desecration, animation, climate change, and beyond

This last newsletter of 2022 includes articles about archives, libraries, genealogy, history, climate change, animation, anime, LGBTQ+ people, and worker rights.

You know those times when you come into a destroyed tree with an evil enchanted girl and see a bunch of scrolls lying on the ground? Well, you might not, but Cass and the Enchanted Girl in the last part of Season three episode of Tangled animated series (“Islands Apart”) do. This is a way to NOT store your scrolls.

Hello everyone! Happy Christmas Eve. I’ve been relatively prolific since my last newsletter on November 20. On my blog, Pop Culture Library Review, I’ve published posts about trans librarians (and trans library users), Japanese and English voice actors who voice fictional librarians, and examining beauty dress codes / fashion of twenty fictional White female librarians. And on December 6th I published my first post, as the Issues & Advocacy blog coordinator, about popular culture and the presence of archival limits. In addition, I published three reviews on Pop Culture Maniacs recently, examining the series, Wednesday, and two anime series I enjoy: Do It Yourself!! and Bocchi the Rock!. I have an upcoming post reviewing the series Spy x Family. With that, let me begin my newsletter, which will be the last one of this year.

There are many articles about archives which can be shared in this newsletter. Some include the launching of NARA’s new catalog at catalog.archives.gov, description of the term archival dynamics by Jarrett Martin Drake which he defines as conceptualizing archives “apart from their institutional instantiations and as dialectical processes that concentrate and codify power”, and University of Louisville Libraries Archivist Heather Fox traveling to Whitesburg, Kentucky to “assist in cleaning and preserving damaged archives at Appalshop”, which is a center focused on Appalachian culture. There was a keynote speech/presentation by Kaetrena Davis Kendrick which compares A*CENSUS II data about employment, whether people want to stay in the profession (and reason for leaving), and use of self-preservation with members at the Society of Georgia Archivists Annual Meeting.

The newest edition of Archival Outlook, for November/December, came out recently. There are articles about diaries, volunteer work for SAA, saving stories, digitizing photographs from the Gwendolyn Brooks collection, preserving voices of Sacramento Chicano Movement, students preserving community media, committing to change, and a message from Acting Archivist of the United States Debra Steidel Wall. Otherwise, I came across newsletters about archiving tens of thousands of Nigerian newspapers, an online Arabic-language online repository named the Archive Foundation which shares different historical documents every few days (especially secret documents from the U.S. and UK), and many others which will be featured in later newsletters. There were further articles about Sydel Silverman who was “…a major proponent of preserving anthropology’s legacy through archival records”, remediating the titles of the sideshow performers collection, best practices for digital preservation, and archiving the web as a public service.

There were some posts I read in the past week which rubbed me the wrong way. One of those a post by Allison Elliott about The Feminist Archive, which aims to make “the archival process more communal, accessible, and most importantly, equitable”, and part of a change in archival practice (i.e. the archival multiverse) which “has come as a result of the boom of community and cultural archives,” allowing marginalized communities to take control of their “their own narratives and developed new ways of collecting, preserving and telling their histories to the public.” That sounds intriguing, as does shaping their “relationships in a framework of radical empathy and mutual responsibility”, and even having digitization which prioritizes “collaboration with the record-holders and honor[ing] their wishes in how the collection is presented once analog materials are digitized.”

Their argument is that “the process is more important than the end product” has value, as does working closely with record creators, and challenging “traditional productions of history.” However, I took issue with description of archives as “rows of dusty boxes in governmental buildings, usually holding municipal records” as this is caused by cultural depictions of archives while archives are nothing like that. It is a myth they are dusty places in basements or with cobwebs. Furthermore, they argued that archives have “something that’s inaccessible to the public”, which I pushed back against, saying it depends on what is being accessed, whether it is classified, and so on, while noting the code of ethics (and core values) of the profession, and arguing that there are those within institutional archives trying to make “the archival process more communal, accessible, and most importantly, equitable”. I said that having a good end product from digitization is important. You can read my whole comment here if you are so inclined. I expect that I won’t receive a reply.

There was another post which seemed a bit wrongheaded. It was originally posted by Katelyn Attanasio, a Senior Program Manager for FUSE Makerspace at CNM Ingenuity, beginning “a series of articles about what media preservation is,” its challenges, what it means, and the trend where people are “advocating for piracy as a means of preserving streaming-only content,” saying that this is “harmful for both preservationists and creators”. In the post itself, Attanasio says that she is a “huge advocate for physical media” but notes that not everything is on streaming platforms, and states that there is a growing number of people suggesting “that the only way to preserve this content is through piracy”. She goes onto say that many films and TV shows are inaccessible to the public but preserved primarily in archives and libraries, since many have rights issues, so they inaccessible, i.e. “not on physical media or streaming.” Furthermore, she notes the mess of the silent film era, and content, more recently, being pulled from streamers and “not being available anywhere else, digital or physical.” She states that the content is being preserved at the Copyright Office at the Library of Congress, as registering something for a copyright means you “fill out paperwork and submit 2 copies of the work to the Library of Congress.” She goes onto object to the idea of pirating as a solution to "preserve" streaming-exclusive content, saying that it can provide access to something but is not preservation, and it can reportedly negatively affect “the artists who are creating these works”. She concludes by saying that film and television should be preserved by all means, and that access is important, but says that “piracy is not a viable solution, neither for creators nor for actual preservation.”

I would say that Attanasio has a valid point that piracy is not a viable solution to other preservation methods. On the other hand, I think she does not recognize that from my experience in various fandoms, fans feel they have no other option than to pirate a show, in order to enjoy it. So, that is a situation that companies have pushed fans into, by publishing fewer series in physical form than ever before. And recent removals from HBO Max, which I noted in my early September newsletter, are increasing this trend. Even the creator of Infinity Train, Owen Dennis, called on people to pirate his show when HBO Max removed it without warning! Surely, piracy is not a form of preservation, as there is always the possibility of police crackdowns on said piracy sites, arguing these sites are violating copyright laws. As one writer put it, piracy itself is a “problem and solution of the distribution at the same time” as it offers content which isn’t otherwise “available in your country”. But, the fact piracy exists “makes production companies decide against publishing a product that is not going to create enough profit,” causing small studios to dissolve and projects to be cancelled. My perception is that people engage in piracy for financial reasons, i.e. paying for content on streaming platforms is too expensive, and piracy thrives due to online communities which allow it to continue. So, it’s not going away anytime soon. Some have even said that the “choice” between streaming services has led more people to turn to piracy to watch their favorite films and television shows.

Other than this, it is worth mentioning that NARA’s catalog now includes 200 million digitized images, an amazing accomplishment, summary of a Archivists Blitz by Kimberlee Roberts, Rebecca Finnigan, and Emily Moran at Bryce Canyon National Park, the importance of adding details to improve access (an interview with Naja Morris, a Archives, History and Heritage Advanced (AHHA) intern for the Library of Congress (LOC)’ Prints & Photographs Division), webinars about professional publishing with the SAA, an update on the HIPAA resources page on the Librarians, Archivists and Museum Professionals in the History of Health Sciences (LAMPHHS) website, and “the risks and potential harm caused by recording gender in library metadata…[and] possible solutions…which to facilitate and promote diversity and inclusion in library collections”, something which can apply to archival collections. Sadly, the new anime short for the Blue Archive video game does not seem to include anything about archives despite the name.

Secret biblioteca first introduced in an episode of Elena of Avalor

Moving onto libraries, there were some intriguing articles, social media posts, and other news of note. Some criticized an ALA survey where school librarians were considered “other” and not even listed as a possible occupation. Others talked about how police were called a segregated library when a 9-year-old boy, Ronald McNair, tried to check out books and refused to leave, after they told him that the library “was not for Black people”, and later became an astronaut, with the library now named after him. Further tweets supported “livable wages for new/early career librarians” and other topics, like a job from the Library Freedom Project which has living wage, benefits, and “doing values-driven work in a really cool community.” A new issue of Journal of Critical Digital Librarianship focused on empathetic digital repositories, ethical and inclusive descriptive practices, leveraging critical information literacy, and library GIS work. In addition, there was a review of Queer Library Alliance, which was described as “an excellent primer and resource for critical thinking about how information professionals can best serve queer communities,” discussion about the end of the OverDrive app, and the battle “between libraries and publishers over e-books”, choosing the right classes in library school, and a talk with Emily Drabinski. She is the new head of the ALA who found herself in the “crosshairs of a right-wing media storm” after calling herself a Marxist lesbian. The interview which should be listened to or have its transcript read. Although I continue to have my skepticism and criticism of the ALA, I still think what she is saying should be paid attention to.

Apart from this were articles about rights-free U.S. Civil War images, libraries that are launching their own local music streaming platforms, graphic design tips on how to communicate better with patrons, and the reel librarians in All About Evil (2010). Others wrote about being a student in library school with no library experience, and interviews with Jesús Colón Rosado of the LOC Public Services Division, and foreign law intern Younkyung (Regina) Eum. Further articles focused on the history of LOC’s Jefferson Building, how to identify and avoid study burnout, an an article saying that common images of libraries only give a “whiff of the deeper essences of library-ness”, and noting that, instead, “libraries are beautiful, filthy places…[and] it all sounds sort of darkly romantic until you realize that you’re breathing the stuff.” The Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries, and Museums presented an award to LOC and former U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo for her signature project “during her 2019 to 2022 term”.

In addition were articles comparing central librarian characters in different films, the importance of libraries identifying things which are “low-demand but high-need”, a LOC law library report examining mass timber construction, how LOC is a “family business” to a reservation staffer, and determining what classes to take in library school. I enjoyed reading about the law library’s report which examines national laws regulating net zero emissions, exploring African music through LOC collections, and describing the history of WWII Glider Pilots using LOC collections. Attacks on libraries continue, including a book-rating system for school libraries proposed by a Texas Republican, which would include “state-approved age-appropriate ratings on the cover of books sold to public and open-enrollment charter schools” and while state agencies could “request changes to the ratings”, publishers which don’t comply would be potentially blacklisted. Last, but not least, is a mention of posts from Michele T. Fenton’s Little Known Black Librarians Facts blog. Some great posts were about the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center at Indiana University, the Mayme A. Clayton Library Museum and Cultural Center in California, and the story of Susan Dart Butler and the Dart Hall Branch Library.

That brings me to the topic of genealogy. One of the most disturbing, and pertinent stories, was a piece in ProPublica about how authorities helped erase a historic Black cemetery in Mecklenburg County, Virginia, paving the way for Microsoft to build their data center there. While White cemeteries are often cared for, Black cemeteries are often badly managed, ignored, or bulldozed. There was a recent 60 Minutes piece noting something similar happening in Clearwater Heights, Florida. In that story, anthropologist Antoinette Jackson, who leads the African American Burial Ground Project at the University of South Florida, said that while there are “abandoned cemeteries across the board…the issue [of cemetery desecration] is more acute with Black cemeteries because of issues like slavery, segregation in which this particular community were legally and intentionally considered lesser than or marginalized by law.” Apart from this, were articles about how human geneticists are beginning to move away from using "race" to identify human populations, the challenge of digitizing yearbooks and creating digital access while considering student privacy and other legal issues (something which made me think twice about digitizing my grandmother’s yearbook), genealogy tips on how to find a missing ancestor, links for A3Genealogy, an illustration about a pet cemetery, and the wonderful world of wills.

Otherwise, there were genealogy-related articles about the Irish diaspora, immigration to British colonies, Irish gravestones, Irish civil records which are online and available for free, miscellaneous tidbits of useful information, military records, determining whether your ancestor is color-blind. Additional articles of interest focused on Ireland and World War I, the history of Ancestry publishing, how to understand first names, marriage data removed from the tombstone of gay couples in a Christian cemetery, about Day of the Dead, the importance of using primary sources, and unmarked graves in West Virginia.

This connects to articles about history. Some focused on the U.S. military’s illegal occupation of Hawaii (here is a thread on the subject), how pop culture should convey history, an argument that digital history of Twitter is at risk, racism within a popular Mother Goose rhyme, and the little known anti-racist work of Norman Rockwell. Other than that, I enjoyed reading stories such as those about 1776 and Santa Claus in New York City, biography of Jackie Cochran, U.S. textbook narratives of imperialism, two men sentenced to prison after defacing 4,000-year-old petroglyphs in Nevada, and Colgate University returning 1,500 artifacts to the Oneida Indian Nation.

There was some criticism of recent tweets by CDC director Rochelle Walensky on the 50th anniversary of the Tuskegee Study, especially when she talked about the “suffering & sacrifice” of the 623 Black men who were part of the study and later said that their legacy lives on. As noted in Newsweek, Atlanta Black Star, BET, and even in reactionary publications like New York Post, Daily Caller, and Hot Air, these remarks were criticized as insensitive and racist. As one commentator noted, she also missed the fact that the study was conducted by the CDC.

There were additional articles on Mary Jane Peale, the forgotten “dinosaur hunter” Charles Whitney Gilmore, immigrant merchants and law-and-order politics in Detroit, determining why direct democracy is a good protection for abortion rights, a new AP course which advances teaching of race in U.S. history, memorials to the Holocaust, and noting that U.S. South's midterms are marred by minor voting problems as systemic challenges persist. There were further articles about the root of Southern Black aesthetics, food histories that changed the world, what a Spanish shipwreck reveals about the final years of the slave trade, and a library researcher finding the first copyrighted film in LOC collections (in 1893).

That brings me to a totally different topic: the environment and climate change. This is my second newsletter focusing on this subject. ProPublica had articles about deadly chemicals at the Goodyear Tire and Rubber plant in Niagara Falls and why the U.S. is losing the fight to ban toxic chemicals. There were articles about youth delivering messages on environment and peace to Lockheed, how the U.S. rail strike vote proves there is no clean way to shut down Big Oil, Saudi prince MBS getting immunity and no consequences for hiking oil prices, and a compilation of stories about India's coal red lines, Pakistan's discounted Russian oil and other topics. I enjoyed reading an interview with two young, emerging Caribbean writers (Nadine Tomlinson and Akhim Alexis) about their climate fiction focusing on overfishing, plight of the working class, language death, language documentation, and other issues. The same could be said for newsletters about how fossil fuel influence choked climate talks, climate case against the Muskrat, and John Kerry’s “climate reparations dilemma” (see here and here), and the November edition of a newsletter about animal advocacy.

Further articles of note are posts from Environment, Law, and History blogspot which focus on the U.S. Clean Air Act, economic theory and climate policy, climate in the American legal academy, and carbon dioxide as an air pollutant. There was an article by a fellow NSA research fellow Rachel Santarsiero about Pacific Islands calling for climate change reparations, the reality of bats which have a “bad reputation in popular culture”, California artists processing wildfires through their work, and treaty and fishing rights activist Billy Frank. This is coupled with an illustration from Jen Sorensen about signs that COP27 fell short.

In the 8th episode of Stars Align, Yu Asaka is shown in a library, reading a book about LGBTQ people, and trying to figure out his identity.

That brings me to one of my long-running topics in this newsletter: LGBTQ+ issues. There was some chatter about dismantling stigma around Monkeypox Mpox and criticism of the Respect for Marriage Act as a “legislative farce”, from a politically radical group, an image of an armed counterprotester in San Antonio who is a member of Veterans For Equality, and a story in Indybay about transphobes Kara Dansky and Lierre Kieth getting their banners snatched away and being pie-d in the face. Some people in the Indybay comments were complaining about the action, but it is relatively tame compared to reactionary shooters going to a neighborhood just because it is filled with Black people as the case for the Buffalo shooting or cutting power to a whole area because of a drag show. Other than that, Them had stories about queerness in Colorado Springs before the awful shooting in a club there, the killing of Diamond Jackson McDonald, a trans woman, in Philadelphia, the wonderful, and official, confirmation of Valorant characters Raze and Killjoy being in love, and favorite LGBTQ movies of 2022. The latter were mainly live-action films, but also a few animated films, like Wendell & Wild (mentioned in my last newsletter) and Inu-Oh. Otherwise, people criticized the New York Times for op-eds which were “simply polite versions of transphobia and homophobia”, or noted topics such as non-monogamy, non-sexual attraction (i.e. asexuality), and the Religious Right targeting so-called “sexless marriages” and wanting a ban on them.

Other articles of note focused on must-read asexual books, wearing an ace ring, timeline of early anti-ace blogging, reading Elementary as a non-romantic love story, five young adult science fiction books starring asexual characters, and a trans and gender diverse LIS network. There were further posts of interest about the intersection of asexuality and nerddom, asexuality and microaggressions, America’s oldest gay bar in New Orleans named Cafe Lafitte’s in Exile (opened in 1933), asexual characters in RPGs, why quieter LGBTQ spaces are worth protecting as much as bars and clubs, and a darling of the “detransition” movement coming out again, this time as transgender. There were additional articles about 21 Ace books to read, Nevada voters passing a comprehensive LGBTQ rights amendment in November, a cat which is neither femalr or male which is warming hearts around the world, lesbian Tina Kotek winning election as next governor of Oregon, and a trans woman named Zoeey Zephyr who won an election as a new Montana legislator sharing a heartwarming interaction with the mother of a trans son. Just as important were articles about Keke Palmer who talked about her sexual fluidity, the Sacred Band of Thebes in Greece (said to be “queer veterans” and an “ancient gay army”), and Eric Sorenson becoming the first LGBTQ member of Congress for Illinois, representing Illinois District 17. I also came across a recently published book by Eris Young entitled Ace Voices: What it Means to Be Asexual, Aromantic, Demi or Grey-Ace, which apparently has a mention of Hazbin Hotel, which is currently in production for a full animated series (currently it is just a pilot and a comic) which may come out next year.

That brings me to the topic of animation. There’s promotional material for the upcoming Hazbin Hotel, and previews for the upcoming season of The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, set to premiere in February of 2023. One of the characters includes Maya, voiced by the aforementioned Palmer. It remains to be seen whether this character will be sexually fluid and queer as much as Palmer is in real-life. Hopefully that is the case. On the other hand, some have even argued that Disney intentionally botched its marketing strategy for Strange World which has a gay lead, a protagonist named Ethan Clade (voiced by Jaboukie Young-White). The low viewership for the film (also see here) has been mocked by reactionaries as “evidence” that supposed “wokeness” is on the decline and have declared the film should be boycotted, even though it has “impressive animation” as even acknowledged by critics. All the while, Disney animation is losing out to competitors like Universal Pictures. There has been further justified criticism of the unnecessary and soulless Pinocchio released on Disney+, with former animator Nancy Beiman arguing it has a “sardonic, self-aware quality that belittles the sweet, sincere original”.

While I couldn’t bring myself to watch the original, as it seemed too silly for me, I did watch the new one, and it was awful, and a waste of the over $100 million spent on it. Much better was the Pinocchio film (on Netflix) by Guillermo Del Toro, a director known for Shape of Water, the Tales of Arcadia animated anthology, and many other productions. I’ll remember the film because of its story, animation, voice acting, and everything else. Publications such as The Hollywood Reporter, Observer, Cartoon Brew, Newsweek, and GamesRadar give more background on the film if you are interested in learning more. I’d definitely recommend you watch it.

Additional animation news focused on current projects which Owen Dennis, creator of Infinity Train, is working on, voice cast and trailer for the recently released Dragon Age: Absolution, a mature animation which features voice actors I’m familiar with like Kimberly Brooks, Ashly Burch, Sumalee Montano, and Zehra Fazal, a presentation about women in animated cinema, review of the hidden gem of sorts named Pantheon, an adult animation with “themes of humanity, death, and conspiracies”, and information about Nimona from Gizmodo, Tor, The Hollywood Reporter, and The Verge, noting the film is set to be released sometime next year. In addition, Multiversity Comics noted that this 2022 was a quiet year for ND Stevenson, despite him being the creator of Nimona and She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, revealing a new first name, now using male pronouns, despite no news about the Lumberjanes TV show. Stevenson himself may have alluded to this in a recent comic which talked about an “intense job” which she began at the beginning of the pandemic (Dec. 2019).

I enjoyed reading about the nine animated short films selected for CEE Animation Talents 2022, a review of the animated film Charlotte, a free update for Clip Studio Paint which is used for webtoons and animation, NBCUniversal Boss Jeff Shell saying that his company’s animation business is more attractive than Disney’s, Netflix debuting animation series Lookism based on Korean webtoon, the Fourth Annual Native American Animation Lab selecting seven fellows, and Matt Braly’s wonderful illustration of Anne Boonchuy. Some annoying fans claimed was “whitewashed”, trying to shame him for drawing the protagonist of the show he created, Amphibia! Sometimes, fandoms can be toxic, as this made clear.

It was interesting to read that the animated Avatar show had to be changed to Avatar: The Last Airbender because James Cameron “already had the rights to a movie called Avatar” and the sequel is now called “The Way of Water”, Ohio Attorney General suing Warner Bros. Discovery for deliberately misleading investors, a major DC Animation deal in the works between Amazon and Warner Bros., Bob Iger replacing the roundly disliked Bob Chapek as CEO of Disney, and the beginning of the African animation scene. Additionally, an article about an elusive isle of demons reminded me of the Inkwell Isles in The Cuphead Show. There were reviews of Inside Job from various sites, like Leisure Byte, Michigan Daily, CBR, and The Gamer, and a review which listed what Polygon considered the best TV shows on Netflix. This list includes animated series such as Arcane, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (anime), and She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. I was surprised that the last one (which I recently rewatched) was one there, because it ended in May 2020! But, I suppose that people are re-watching it.

That brings me to the subject of anime. The premiere anime review site, Anime News Network reported about the Laid-Back Camp Movie (which I’d definitely recommend if you like somewhat realistic slice-of-life stories), the ending of the Adachi and Shimamura novel series (originally an anime), a TV anime based on the I’m In Love with the Villainess yuri isekai novels coming in 2023, the anime industry growing by 13.3% in 2021, the reveal of a key visual of Kizuna Ai's Kizuna no Allele TV Anime (which looks a bit gay), a Spy×Family panel with George Wada, and an interview with ANN's CEO and Publisher Christopher Macdonald. Other articles focused on how VTubers outnumber all other fandoms at next Comiket, the writing of anime filler episodes, continued high ratings for SpyxFamily, Japanese art content sites tightening rules around AI-generated art, anime game music composer Hidekazu Tanaka arrested for alleged sexual assault, and the delay of the second season of Birdie Wing from to April 2023. Recently, ANN had articles summarizing the film Kaguya-sama: Love is War -The First Kiss That Never Ends-, noting that The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess (a yuri anime which premieres in January) released its first character video on Anisphia, noting that Seiyū Radio no Ura Omote light novel series got a TV anime, noting that Spy×Family anime got a 2nd season and film in 2023, and noting the D4DJ All Mix 2nd season anime's promo video which reveals not only the theme songs and but the January 13 premiere!

There were further articles listing yuri / shoujo-ai series (French website), essential list of yuri, Funimation titles which were added to Crunchyroll on Dec. 14 (due to the Funimation-Crunchyroll merger), reveal of a key visual for Yuri is My Job (which will debut in Spring 2023), Crunchyroll unveiling categories for 2023 Anime Awards, the writer of I’m in Love with Villainess banned for a joke on Twitter, and NHK asking Netflix to remove its titles due to ad-supported subscriptions. More details on the latter were noted in Newsbreaker, Japan Times, and Anime News Network. The shows may include Coil - A Circle of Children, but on the /r/anime subreddit, one commenter said “it's likely only if you're in Japan. NHK doesn't distribute or license anything outside of Japan.” Also see this tweet.

There was also an update on the well-known Yuri Reviews website noting that the main author doesn’t “feel a pressing desire to get back to writing stuff” and saying it was a waste of time to only write about subtext in anime, but the other author said they “have a feeling that there will be shows in the future that we just can’t not review” like Arcane season 2 and Arknights. Also of note is that the sci-fi yuri manga Hoshikuzu Telepath is getting a TV anime adaptation, likely in 2023, and that a third season of Laid-Back Camp was recently announced.

On a completely different topic is unions and worker rights, which is being added to this newsletter for the first time. In the Library with a Lead Pipe talked about lessons from organizing for librarians, a labor force shortfall as a result of COVID deaths (also see here), and Biden siding with railroad barons over workers in fear over a possible strike. This included articles in The Baffler, an illustration which shows Biden tying a railroad worker to the tracks, and a newsletter of the People’s CDC expressing solidarity with “freight railroad workers’ demands for safe working conditions and sick leave.” In addition, there were statements by politically radical groups calling out Biden and the bipartisan agreement in Congress as selling out railroad workers, so-called progressives like Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez voting in favor of the barons, and possibly even indicating a “demise” of liberal politics (I think this view is not completely right). Furthermore, unions decried Biden’s actions and more than 500 labor historians condemned his intervention in the freight rail dispute.

I liked reading about UMD student workers’ groups rallying for $22 an hour livable wage, members from the animation, gaming, voice acting, and VFX industries coming together to discuss “unionization efforts across games, VFX, animation, and voice acting” on November 11, asking if college is progressive if instructors make poverty wages, and Nickelodeon production workers unionizing with the Animation Guild. The latter was covered in articles in Deadline Hollywood, LA Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and Cartoon Brew.

There were further posts on other topics which deserve recognition but don’t fit neatly into any other part of this newsletter. This included the parliamentary coup of sorts in Peru, the release of Victor Bout in exchange for Brittany Griner, a conservative activist who poured millions into groups seeking to influence Supreme Court on elections and discrimination, why Congress can’t stop the CIA From working with forces that commit abuses, and Congress passing a bill to rein in conflicts of interest for consultants such as McKinsey. Other posts focused on passenger trains in the U.S. versus those in Europe, a proposed boycott of the overrated film by James Cameron (the new Avatar) for being racist and awful, fired Pacifica Director's lawsuit leaving KPFA in dire straits, why the POW-MIA flag flies over America, so-called ‘luddite’ teens disconnecting from social media and technology, demographics and the shrinking future of college, how to blast through writers burnout / block or not, the coming raising rates of streaming services, the hypocrisy of going to conferences centered on disability, health, or any other topic while unmasked, stating that homeless people are a result of the problem but are not the problem themselves, the fact that disabled people can’t immigrate to most countries, criticizing the injection of White opinions about events in BIPOC spaces, police killings in 2022, a way to export your Twitter followers, Twitter and the horrendous digital stream of consciousness, moving forward in fandoms, explaining why Mormon support for same-sex marriage isn't a total surprise, and challenges that people with Long COVID face to government disability benefits.

Otherwise, I’d like to mention illustrations in The Nib and elsewhere. Some talked about how artists have made their art accessible for the poor, while Women Write About Comics had posts about how poor communication can become a red flag for freelance artists, and noted that Catch These Hands! is a sweet, romantic treat. The Nib had illustrations portraying the former president as an alien coming out of the chest of an elephant, sowing the seeds for another mass shooting, rightward shift in the U.S., examining the dark history of hysteria, the drawbacks of a perfect photographic memory, and a shaky work-life balance.

That’s all for this newsletter. See you all next year!

- Burkely