LIBRARIES AS PRESERVERS AND PURVEYORS OF AFRICAN- AMERICAN CULTURE

1. African-American Research Library & Cultural Ctr, Fort Lauderdale, FL Douglass-Truth branch, Seattle Public Library 1965 reading at Douglass-Truth branch LIBRARIES AS PRESERVERS AND PURVEYORS OF AFRICAN- AMERICAN CULTURE Group 1: Andrew Z., Kenny, Emily M., Kristine

2. Outline • Libraries as Preservers and Purveyors of African- American Culture • ALA Documents • Battles: "Reading the Library" • Augst: "American Libraries and Agencies of Culture" • Malone: "Public Libraries in the Age of Segregation" • Malone: "History of African Americans as Library Users and Professionals" • Supplemental article by Booth: "Insuring the Nation's Destiny: Reducing the Digital Divide" • Conclusions • References

3. Library Bill of Rights • Enacted in 1948; amended four times since • Six principles: • Provide materials and information presenting all points of view; • Challenge censorship; • Cooperate with people concerned with limiting free expression & access; • Never deny a person's right to use library due to age, origin, views; and • Make exhibit/meeting spaces available to public on an equitable basis for everyone.  • Bill of Rights interpretations through the years • Access for minors to non-print materials; free access to libraries for minors; internet usage and minors; access to digital information; access regardless of sexual identity/orientation; diversity in collection development; economic barriers to access; removal/alteration/editing of collection; intellectual freedom issues; service to the disabled; privacy issues, etc. ALA - American Library Association

4. ALA (continued) Equity of Access document  • All people should: • Have information they need regardless of age, education, ethnicity, language, income, physical limitations or geographic barriers; • Be able to obtain that info in a variety of formats (print, electronic); and • Be free to exercise their right to know without fear of censorship or reprisal. • The ALA has identified three current topics of importance in Equity of Access: • Digital Divide • Economic Barriers & Internet • Technology & Telecommunications.

5. Battles explores the idealized concept of the "universal library" in history, using Harvard University's Widener Library as his main point of reference. • Relative to African American culture, this article raises an important question... • Question: Is the universal library a valid concept, when tested by African American experiences with libraries? • Our answer: The “universal library” may not really exist except as an ideal. • Even massive libraries have in the past neglected materials and patrons from non-dominant cultures, including African Americans. • In addition, at some points in history, lower literacy among African Americans may have meant they authored fewer books. • However, libraries should incorporate African American literature, other types of print material, oral histories, music, memoirs, photos. • Some libraries have been created to focus specifically on African American experiences and patrons, e.g., the segregated public libraries of the past, the private African American Cultural Center and Research Library (www.broward.org/library/aarlcc.htm), modern African-American history collections. Battles

6. Three salient points about the role of libraries • The library as an institution of self-improvement • The institution provides the necessary resources for "the citizens' defense of their political privileges" (7). • Andrew Carnegie: "A taste for reading drives out lower tastes" (11). • The library as part of society's "physical infrastructure" (10).  • Public and private funding for the construction of libraries (11).  Role of women in attracting funding (13). • Libraries as services within "rationalized, bureaucratic" structures (12, 15). •  Democratization, decentralization of knowledge • From college and private libraries to social and public libraries (8). From physical to digital infrastructure (18-20). Augst

7. Underdevelopment of public libraries in the South • Only eleven segregated Carnegie Libraries founded in the region's urban areas. • Lack of library infrastructure made for poor access for African Americans, but also for over half of the white population (Malone 10). • Motives from the creation of segregated public libraries. • Advocacy of northern black intellectuals and the decision of Andrew Carnegie. The creation of "universities for the people." • Local activism and private initiative (Malone 5).  •  Creation of college libraries as additions to historically black colleges and universities. • Lack of professional staff and appropriate collection policies. Undersized collections (Malone 11-12) Malone (Class article) Public Libraries in the Age of Segregation

8. Social condition (segregation, the Jim Crow South) • Through World War II, most African Americans lived in the South in rural areas. Economic and intellectual privations created a divide between populations (1). Few literate African Americans in early history meant fewer records, similar to Native Americans. • The founding of educational institutions and libraries serving African American communities showed improvements within the intellectual realm (1). • With the help of individuals such as Andrew Carnegie and civil activists in the South, teaching institutes and colleges for African Americans were founded, creating libraries, and in some cases providing access to materials for nearby black communities (2-5). • Racial segregation and discrimination were the driving force for civil rights groups and the main attributing cause of the growth of libraries and African Americans achieving parity in their use of information and related information professions (2). • The movement eventually led to changes toward equitable information access for all African Americans (2, 19-20). Malone(Group 1 Article)History of African Americans as Library Users and Professionals

9. Malone(Group 1 Article)History of African Americans as Library Users and Professionals • Professional Condition (African American movement, professionals in libraries) • Western Colored Branch Library opens in 1906, with all black staff in Louisville, Kentucky. Funded by Andrew Carnegie, under the guidance of Thomas Fountain Blue and Rachel Davis Harris. First developed public library collection of African American works providing access to black schools and communities (3). The library became the model for future libraries and helped to create over a thousand public libraries and the establishment of Black colleges and university libraries (5-6). • Regina Anderson Andrews (Jr. Clerk / New York Public Library 135th Street Branch). W.E.B. DuBois and NAACP, helped promote her in 1930. She became the first African American branch manager of the 115th Street Branch of the New York Public Library System (5). She emphasized community outreach, and created programs to bring people into the library for cultural events. • Augusta Braxton Baker. Received a degree in Library Science; was appointed as the system-wide Coordinator of Children's Services at the NYPL System (5-6). • Vivian Gordon Harsh . First African American professional in the Chicago Public Library. Established the Special Negro Library Collection composed of African American writers and intellectuals. Used for research of African Americans in Illinois and literature. • Clara Stanton Jones. In 1976, became the first black president of the American Library Association. She extended the advances of African Americans related to libraries (18).

10. The Irony of it all • Segregation policies actually *created* educational and professional opportunities that wouldn't have existed if there weren't segregated branches for African Americans to work in and gain access to information toward the creation of African American collections (Malone 5, 9-12, 15-17). • Once African Americans found a voice, Booker T Washington, and an outlet, Andrew Carnegie, they gained a foothold in the South that created some of the first library opportunities and social advantages even with limited access. • Gender had a strong representation for African Americans working in African American libraries. Many African American professionals working in libraries were female and held high positions. Many examples of professional librarians and African American authority figures contributed to the evolution and spread of libraries in the United States (Malone 5-6, 8, 12, 14, 18). • Unlike Native Americans, cultural artifacts weren't taken away from African Americans--they were ignored. As a result, African Americans took upon themselves to maintain their culture and history by keeping it alive through active participation in libraries and in information professions (Malone 17-21). Further thoughts on Malone and Augst...

11. “Insuring the Nation's Destiny: Reducing the Digital Divide” • by William Booth, Hampton University • Focuses on a technology survey by the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education at HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges & Universities) • Comprise 118 post-secondary schools founded prior to Civil Rights Act or after 1963 and enroll a plurality of black and other minorities; • Are located in 24 states in large urban cities, suburbs, rural towns with highest number in South; • Offer bachelors, masters, doctoral, & post-doctoral degrees; • Are 1/2 publicly funded, 1/2 privately funded; • Participate in the HBCU Library Alliance, which supports campus technology and info literacy training & garnered positive marks from survey respondents. Booth (Supplementary Article)Insuring the Nation’s Destiny: Reducing the Digital Divide

12. Booth (continued) • "Digital Gaps" are clearly present at HBCUs: • Students arrive on campus with less computer knowledge/experience; • Fewer than 25% of students own computers (due to lower household income) and rely heavily on campus systems; • Only 13% of HBCUs even recommend having one vs. 30.5% of all US colleges; • Web-based resources not being used consistently within courses; • Distance learning opportunities very limited at this point. How to meet the challenge? "A manageable digital divide today can evolve into an unmanageable digital gulf tomorrow." -- W. Booth

13. Booth (continued) • Recent Technology Enhancement Capital Campaign provided $80 million for HBCU improvements through the United Negro College Fund, Microsoft, IBM, AT&T, others. It includes projects such as: • Wireless Networks, LAN upgrades, computer storage infrastructures; • Computer lab upgrades; labs added to dorms (where needed most); and • Additional software and hardware to meet growing demand on campus. Author's conclusion While HBCUs are certainly not in the "dark ages," they must continue to make  improvements in order to meet changing and expanding technologies as well as the need for students and faculty to possess solid computing and internet skills. The HBCU Library Alliance (www.hbculibraries.org) has been a powerful force in making this happen so far, and will continue to be integral in the years ahead.  

14. According to the ALA, African Americans as well as other groups have the right to be represented in library collections and to have equitable access to them. • The “universal library” described by Battles may not really exist except as an ideal, but libraries should nonetheless try to actively incorporate materials by and about African Americans (and other non-dominant cultures) into their collections. • As Augst says, libraries are necessary as institutions of self-improvement, development of political citizenship, and the democratization and decentralization of knowledge. • There have always been issues related to segregation and a "digital divide" for African Americans. However, the development of libraries and centers of information with a focus on African Americans have gradually given this group greater equity of access. • HBCUs, who currently provide higher education to more than 350,000 African Americans, are in a unique position to help shrink the digital divide -- and the Library Alliance within these institutions has taken a major role in the information technology and literacy training effort to date.  However, a recent HBCU Technology Assessment study found that while progress is being made, there are several key issues that continually need to be addressed to ensure future success. Conclusions...

15. References Works cited ALA. Library Bill of Rights (1996). Retrieved 10/09/09 from http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/oif/statementspols/statementsif/librarybillrights.cfm ALA. Equity of Access statement (N.d.). Retrieved 10/09/09 from  http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/access/equityofaccess/index.cfm Augst, Thomas. "Introduction: American Libraries and Agencies of Culture." American Studies 42.3 (2001): 5-22. Battles, Matthew. "Reading the Library." Library: An Unquiet History. New York: W.W. Norton & Company (2003): 3-21.  Booth, William. "Insuring the Nation's Destiny: Reducing the Digital Divide." Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks 10.3 (2006): 49-53. Malone, Cheryl Knott. "History of African Americans as Library Users and Professionals in U.S. Libraries." Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences. 3rd ed. (2009). Malone, Cheryl Knott. “Public Libraries in the Age of Segregation" (unpublished manuscript). Images on cover slide African-American Research Library & Cultural Center, Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Retrieved 10/10/09 from http://www.broward.org/library/aarlcc.htm Douglass-Truth branch, Seattle Public Library. Retrieved 10/10/09 from http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=4056