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The Change the Subject Project at NYPL, BPL, and BookOps: Programming

About

A program of public events were planned to publicize the libraries’ efforts with New Yorkers and included screenings of the Change the Subject documentary followed by panel discussions with student activists, librarians involved in the project, and library colleagues undertaking similar efforts. These and other programs raised awareness of the challenges inherent in the existing library classification systems and highlighted the role library users can play in advocating for reforms. 

Additionally, Brooklyn Public Library undertook a community engagement process to better understand how library staff and patrons feel about classification language used in the library catalog. BPL engaged with THE CITY to convene a series of small group meetings with staff and patrons, and to facilitate community conversation in select branch libraries. 

Change the Subject Programming

Upcoming Events

  • FREE PLA webinar "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Library Catalog" (Dec 2021):  Staff from BPL, NYPL, and BookOps will present a webinar on how to incorporate and reflect diversity, equity, and inclusion in the library catalog. The panelists will share knowledge and resources from their experience undertaking this work at BPL and NYPL in partnership with BookOps. Register here.

Past Events

  • Language and Justice (July 22, 2021): BPL and the Center for Brooklyn History partnered to examine the impact of language use in cataloging and classification. Panelists: Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, Rinku Sen, Sol Lopez, Otto Santa Ana, Brandi Collins-Dexter (moderator). View recording here. 
  • "Change the Subject. A Documentary About Labels, Libraries, and Activism" & Discussion Panel with Student Activists and Librarians Featured in It (September 21, 2021): NYPL hosted a virtual screening of the documentary and invited student activists and librarians featured in the film to reflect on the making of it and to talk about their ongoing efforts to initiate change in the library and their communities.
  • Doc Chat Episode 32: Identity, Anti-Bias Practices, and the Library Catalog (September 30, 2021): In this episode of Doc Chat, panelists discussed the implications of language relating to immigration in the library catalog. Panelists speak to the initiatives of NYPL and BPL to replace “illegal aliens” in the context of similar projects by other institutions. View recording here. 
  • METRO Equity in Action Recipient Presentation: NYPL & BPL (October 7, 2021) View recording here. 
  • “Illegal alien” and the Social Products of Language (October 14, 2021): BPL partners with Safe Passages Project, the Arab American Association of New York, and the Youth Power Project at Make the Road New York. The youth panel explored how the use of the phrase “illegal alien” originated and how biased and harmful language promotes negative perceptions and mistreatment of immigrants. View recording here. 
  • Community Engagement Events/The Words that Matter to Us (August–October 2021): Brooklyn Public Library partnered with THE CITY Newsroom, a local non-profit news organization, to host a series of conversations and focus groups examining how language use impacts different aspects of information access for immigrants and non-English speaking communities. 

     

     

DocChat Episode 32: Identity, Anti-Bias and the Library Catalog

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