The Idea for a Diversity Issue
The idea for this issue grew out of a brainstorming session during a virtual meeting of the Children and Libraries Editorial Advisory Committee, and it has been the focus of our work and conversations for almost two years since that time. The Committee suggested having a themed issue of the journal to focus on topics of current interest to members as a new way to focus the journal and use it as a vehicle to bring about critical conversations. ALSC has already been engaged in work related to diversity, including:
- Día, which grew from the Children’s Day/Book Day celebration
- the Day of Diversity: Dialogue and Action in Children’s Literature and Library
- the Online Day of Diversity Forum
- the new Diversity within ALSC Task Force
Inviting journal submissions exploring diversity in the literature we share and the programs we offer in our libraries seemed like a natural next step to complement and support these important activities.
Thank You to Our Contributors
One of the greatest strengths of this issue lies in the authors who contributed their voices to the conversation.
- KT Horning compiled an invaluable timeline of diversity in children’s literature that will surely find its way into many university children’s literature classes.
- Allie Jane Bruce invites us into a deeply personal look at what it means to be white and how that informs her own lens on the importance of diversity.
- Africa Hands synthesizes contributions from the field, highlighting powerful programming related to diversity happening in libraries.
- Sarah Park Dahlen and Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada revisit the amazing Day of Diversity at the 2015 Midwinter Meeting.
- We were pleased to include an article on serving children with disabilities in library programming by Denise Adkins and Bobbie Bushman, as it was important to us to not only represent diversity as a matter of race, but also of differences in other forms.
- Venerable authors of diverse children’s literature contribute their voices to the discussion in an article bringing together Janet Wong, Kadir Nelson, and Pat Mora’s views on diversity and the role it plays in their work.
- Debbie Reese closes out the issue with her well-articulated and impassioned views of diversity in The Last Word.
This list only touches on the fantastic pieces included in the issue, and the author list, both lengthy and highly respectable, is itself a “yearbook” of sorts of the strong voices in our field who are talking about, writing about, and practicing diversity.
The Conversation Begins
It was a privilege to work with Sharon Verbeten, the Editor of Children and Libraries, throughout this entire process. Her wisdom, experience, and leadership brought the issue together in the integrated, meaningful way in which it is presented. Acting as Guest Editor gave me the opportunity to get to know so many wonderful, kind, and knowledgeable members of ALSC, and I am so grateful to have had this opportunity to spread the word about diversity in literature and libraries. I truly hope you enjoy this issue, share it widely, and use it to spark the discussions that must be had about the diversity in (and out) of our literature and our libraries.
Please read the issue and share your thoughts in the comments below!
*************************************************************************
Today’s guest blogger is Mary-Kate Sableski, Ph.D. Mary-Kate is an Assistant Professor in the School of Education and Health Sciences at the University of Dayton. She is also a member of the Children and Libraries Editorial Advisory Committee.
Please note that as a guest post, the views expressed here do not represent the official position of ALA or ALSC.
If you’d like to write a guest post for the ALSC Blog, please contact Mary Voors, ALSC Blog manager, at alscblog@gmail.com.