Positivity, libraries, hashtags, and more
This week's newsletter will focus on archives and libraries like always, noting some blogposts I put out in the past week and a new article in I Love Libraries. Enjoy!
Hello everyone! I know this week has been a tough one with the storming of the U.S. Capitol this past Wednesday by right-wing extremists and the fallout around that. I could go on about that, but I’d like to focus on something else which is more positive. This past week, my article in I Love Libraries got published, reviewing one of my favorite characters in the animated series, Hilda. Here’s an excerpt from that article:
…Hilda continues to show the value of libraries and librarians, remaining one of the best animated depictions of the profession…the episode shows the value of libraries, proper organization, and knowledge itself…the protagonists…sneak into the library on a mission to fix the tide mice problem…[the librarian] catches them but decides to help them with their quest…In one particularly delightful moment, she uses her magic powers to ride a vacuum cleaner like a skateboard. Coincidentally, Ghostbusters begins with a famous scene in the New York Public Library…[the librarian] goes beyond her normal responsibilities to aid her patrons, making clear the importance of librarians and libraries.
I would say the name of the librarian here, but you’ll have to watch the series to find that one out! Building on that post, I published a piece about secret rooms, the Witches Tower, and archives in the series on my blog reviewing archives in popular culture. Apart from this, I posted a short article highlight comedy and fun in libraries within three Western animations, and a post asking whether my ancestor, John H. Packard, was one of the best surgeons in West Philly, or not. With that addressed, let me move to the next part of my newsletter with a renewed vigor!
Starting with archives, I came across an article in the New York Times about the archives hashtag party organized by NARA, where archives share images of records from their collections in order to promote the value of archives! I missed the one late last year, but there’s one coming up next month (on February 5), and you can view what archives have posted in the past here. I’d also like to point to Dara A. Baker, a long-time archivist for NARA, who talks about archives “in the age of COVID” in the International Journal of Naval History, and Deborah S. Davis emphasizing the importance of having a successful archives and special collections program “through constant advocacy.” At the same time, there were posts about archival innovators and what NARA did in 2020, including: fighting COVID; new finding aids for Bureau of Indian Affairs Photographs, indigenous treaties, presidential libraries, and voting rights; more citizen archivist contributions; a virtual July 4 celebration; posting more on YouTube; a new social media strategy; posting Electoral College documents online and making them publicly accessible; and celebrating the 19th Amendment. Finally, NARA’s history hub somewhat answered a question about when U.S. government documents began to be typewritten and NARA put together a set of frequently asked questions about dual citizenship.
This leads me to libraries. As always, Hack Library School had posts about things librarians should be learning about copyright, preparing for a semester in library school, and the declaration that 2021 should be the year “you take action.” This article claims that you should pick “one problem” to focus on in 2021, “educate yourself,” “donate money,” “contact your representative,” “join a group,” and “be a leader.” While this is supposed to be surprising, this is a very limited set of options which should be much broader and acknowledge that not everyone wants to make more friends or is extroverted, meaning they likely wouldn’t want to join a group or be a leader. Besides, donating money and contacting your representative can only go so far and “educating yourself” goes far beyond anti-racism and individual action which the writer seems to be implying, showing their limited perspective. Anyway, moving on beyond that individualistic article, American Libraries has a wonderful piece about how libraries promote ethical care of Indigenous collections, the New York Public Library wrote about vintage New Years’ postcards, and the ALA welcomed an increase to the IMLS (Institute of Museum & Library Services) in the recent congressional appropriations bill. At the same time, some said that librarians should be prioritized in vaccine plans and the CEO of the New York Public Library, Anthony Marx, pointed out the hard lessons libraries and everyone else can take from the pandemic. Before ending this paragraph, I’d like to note the Library of Congress’s By the People campaigns which ask for citizen contributors on various topics, such as:
Papers from Allan Lomax
Walt Whitman
Suffragists
Frederick Hockley
Anna E. Dickinson
Mary Church Terrell
Letters to Teddy Roosevelt
Spanish legal documents
Clara Barton
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Letters to Lincoln
Susan B. Anthony
the Revolutionary War
Civil War soldiers
Carrie Chapman Catt
Rosa Parks
There are many others, but I’d recommend looking through these, especially the ones that aren’t done, and doing some transcription to help out.
I have some other stories to mention before I close this newsletter. Jeannette Holland Austin wrote about lost census records, Margot Note will talk about creating family archives in a webinar on February 18, and recovering the lost works of female renaissance artists. In addition, there were stories about how computer science students are drawn to translating Sanskrit, efforts to save the burial ground of Marian Anderson and other Black Philadelphians, and how Black women changed the face of education in America. I also enjoyed reading about how the comics industry avoided an implosion in 2020, Simon & Schuster cancelling the publication of Josh Hawley’s book, after he supported the storming of the Capitol, and William Hogeland talked about the worst election in history: the 1876 election!
That’s it for this newsletter. I hope you all have a productive week to come!
- Burkely