I don’t know about you, but this all (*gestures around wildly*) seems like a bit much. The weeks can seem heavy, and we have so much information and so many fast and furious demands, with many of us feeling like we don’t have the time or interest (but we do have the feeling of obligation) that it can consume us. I don’t have a solution for you or anything, but if you are feeling a little overwhelmed by it all right now, give yourself permission to step back a bit. Hopefully all of us can be supportive and understanding, not knowing what others might truly be dealing with. I hope I have your understanding about this update being later than usual, as I took a much needed step away (actually above, at over 10,000 ft above sea level). So take a deep breath, take time for yourself, and know that we will all be here for each other.
~Sherry
Resources:
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Service to a Beautiful Mosaic: The Information Needs of the English as a Second Language (ESL) Community Reijo Savolainen’s everyday life seeking model is useful in understanding how the ESL community seeks, uses, and shares information. This research paper seeks to understand the information needs of the ESL community and how libraries and information centers can best serve those needs.
Continuing Education:
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Library Advocacy and Storymaking: The Hero’s Journey from Community to Page, UW iSchool, August 5 – September 1, 2024 (4 weeks). This course explores the impact of advocacy stories in a shifting library landscape and how to implement library advocacy through strategies that both uncover and inspire community heroes. Participants will workshop their own short library advocacy story using a storytelling model in which the library user is the central figure in the tale of how they use their library to access what they need to create the community they want.
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Ready for Reentry, August 13, 1 pm. Individuals reentering the community from jail or prison may come to your library facing many unique challenges that impact their ability to make a smooth and effective transition into society. Learn about online resources and programs you can point to that can help them navigate the reentry journey in areas that impact them the most: housing, employment, education, healthcare and legal barriers. Helping them access these tools is an initial step in helping these individuals rebuild their lives.
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Telehealth 101: What libraries need to know, September 9 – October 7, 2024. Libraries in locations across the United States are beginning to offer their patrons access to telehealth services as a strategy for addressing inequities in digital access to healthcare. This NIH free class introduces telehealth, why it’s important, and how it enables people to have greater access to quality healthcare. Explore how different libraries provided patrons in their communities with access to telehealth services. This class will address privacy and ethical concerns, and review the technology and infrastructure needed to launch a successful telehealth program in your library. The class will consist of three one-hour modules.
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Wellness in the Library Workplace, September 16 – 27, 2024. Are you a dedicated library worker who helps your community find valuable health information? While you empower others, it’s crucial to consider your well-being. The connection between individual and community well-being is undeniable. Creating a workplace that fosters employee wellness helps improve staff health and patron services. Join the NIH in this free 2-week, 4-CE class to explore strategies for enhancing your well-being and cultivating a healthy work environment.
Consumables:
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What Can You Read in Prison? Books provide a lifeline to the incarcerated, but censorship and accessibility are major obstacles. In America’s prisons, people are finding their own ways to fight back.
Diverse Holidays in July:
July is Disability Pride Month. In 2015, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio declared July Disability Pride Month in celebration of the ADA’s 25th anniversary. The month is a chance to honor each person’s uniqueness as “a natural and beautiful part of human diversity,” according to America’s Disability Community. The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed by President George H.W. Bush on July 26, 1990, a landmark law that prohibited discrimination against people with disabilities. In that same year, Boston held the first Disability Pride Day. Although Disability Pride Day isn’t nationally recognized, parades are held in a number of places nationwide, such as Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, San Antonio and more. Librarians Unite has a free printable poster to raise awareness.
July is BIPOC Mental Health Month: This toolkit from Mental Health America includes ready to use social media messages, outreach ideas, posters and more. Formally recognized in June 2008 (and currently designated as), Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month was created to bring awareness to the unique struggles that underrepresented groups face in regard to mental illness in the US. Bebe Moore Campbell was an American author, journalist, teacher, and mental health advocate who worked tirelessly to shed light on the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities.
July 10: Martyrdom of the Báb, this holiday commemorates the 1850 execution of the co-founder of the Baha’i faith, the Báb, in Persia.
July 14: International Non-Binary People’s Day, aimed at raising awareness and organizing around the issues faced by non-binary people around the world while celebrating their contributions.
July 17: Ashura, is marked by Muslims as a whole, but for Shia Muslims it is a major religious commemoration of the martyrdom at Karbala of Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. It is marked by Muslims with a voluntary day of fasting which commemorates the day Noah left the Ark, and the day that Moses was saved from the Egyptians by God.
July 18: Nelson Mandela International Day, launched on July 18, 2009, in recognition of Nelson Mandela’s birthday via unanimous decision of the U.N. General Assembly. It was inspired by a call Nelson Mandela made a year earlier for the next generation to take on the burden of leadership in addressing the world’s social injustices: “It is in your hands now.” It is more than a celebration of Mandela’s life and legacy; it is a global movement to honor his life’s work and to change the world for the better.
July 23: 17th of Tammuz, is a fast day, devoted to mourning the breaching of Jerusalem’s walls and the other tragic events that occurred on this day.
July 26: Disability Independence Day, celebrating the anniversary of the 1990 signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
July 30: International Day of Friendship, proclaimed in 2011 by the U.N. General Assembly with the idea that friendship between peoples, countries, cultures and individuals can inspire peace efforts and build bridges between communities.
Sherry Anderson (she/her)
Director – Northern Waters Library Service (NWLS)
Inclusive Services Consultant for NWLS and Wisconsin Valley Library Service