I started my morning under the glittering disco ball of The Invigatorium, waiting for a vegan breakfast sandwich on the way to my first #alaac24 session: “Literary Kaleidoscope: A Journey Through Diverse Narratives,” presented by ALA affiliate LiteracyNation Inc. and moderated by Eboni Henry. Panelists included LiteracyNation Inc. founders Richard E. Ashby Jr. and Charmaine Ashby, MAYS Multimedia CEO Elizabeth Mays, and authors Dr. Sheila R. Thomas, Marissa Wojcik, Tyonie Patterson, and Naomi V. Dunsen-White.
Less than 30 minutes after Mr. Ashby began speaking, the tears that welled up in my eyes had no time to fall before he had everyone in the packed room laughing, myself included. (What can I say? Getting culturally relevant texts into kids’ hands makes me emotional. But also, I may have manifested this by wearing my “So Emotional” Whitney tee today.)
LiteracyNation Inc.’s tagline is “With Literacy and Justice for All.” In service of that mission, Ashby and the panelists spoke of why and how they’re getting diverse narratives from independent authors into libraries. This includes the diligent work of their team of Indiec@ts and IndieViewers, who ensure that titles by these authors are cataloged in the WorldCat system and reviewed.
Finally: If you read my first post, you know I came to #alaac24 (a.k.a. “library camp”) a stranger. I can already say I won’t leave as one! After the session, I had a chance to speak to one of the independent authors on the panel, Dr. Sheila R. Thomas. Her professional background overlaps with my own, and she lives not too far from my hometown of Gainesville, Florida. We didn’t have long to speak, but we exchanged info—and a hug!—and made plans to connect after #alaac24. I’m a happy camper, y’all.
What has been your favorite session so far? Drop a line in the comments below or at ktaksier@ufl.edu.
Conference Blogger Kelley Taksier (they/them/theirs) is a former classroom teacher pursuing a PhD in special education at the University of Florida. Currently their research focuses on students’ access to texts in public schools. As a part of this work, they collaborate with school librarians, who encouraged them to join and attend ALA! They are looking forward to connecting with more school librarians at their first ALA conference in between enjoying all the vegan food San Diego has to offer.
Please note that as a guest post, the views expressed here do not represent the official position of ALA or ALSC.
Richard Ashby
This is beautiful!! Thank you.
“With Literacy and Justice for All”