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Black Lives Matter Book Display: Inspirations and Featured Resources

As we put together this display, we were inspired by some excellent reading lists, blogs, and social medial campaigns related to #Black Lives Matter, racism, and other similar topics. Here’s a roundup of some resources for those who want to read more — or for anyone who is not able to make it over to the Langson Library  to check out the Black Lives Matter Display.

 

5 Reading Lists

Left Bank Books: Black Lives Matter – A Reading List

Longreads: Black Lives Matter – A Reading List

The #BlackLivesMatters Syllabus

The Lemonade Syllabus

Syllabus for White People To Educate Themselves

 

5 Blogs

New South Negress Writing, diversity, & research consulting services with an emphasis on race, gender, culture, cities, and social justice for individuals and organizations.

RacismReview RacismReview is intended to provide a credible and reliable source of information for journalists, students and members of the general public who are seeking solid evidence-based research and analysis of “race,” racism, ethnicity, and immigration issues.

Black Girl Dangerous Mia McKenzie, creator of the enormously popular website Black Girl Dangerous, writes about race, queerness, class and gender in a concise, compelling voice filled at different times with humor, grief, rage, and joy.

Authors of Color A place to find literature and writing by authors of color.

This is Everyday Racism This blog is a safe space by and for people of color where they can share their experiences with everyday, subtle racism, or racial microaggressions. Our main goal is to help people of color feel supported and validated in dealing with this insidious, and often far more damaging, form of racism.

 

5 Additional Social Media Campaigns

#blacklivesmatter Black Lives Matter is an affirmation & embrace of the resistance & resilience of Black people. Founded by

#IfTheyGunnedMeDown illustrates the pejorative selection of images used in news stories about black victims of police shootings.

#blackgirlmagic celebrates the beauty, power and resilience of black women.

#ACLU defends and preserves the individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States.

#LibrariesResist  Building a curated list of resources for libraries and library workers in the resistance.

 

 

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A Word from the Department of Education and Outreach: Black Lives Matter Book Display

We were inspired by #BlackLivesMatter to highlight materials from UCI Libraries’ collection that can help us to understand—and to resist—the pervasive racism in our society. Black lives matter—and in this display we celebrate the actual matter (e.g. art, film, literature, and music) created by and about Black lives and emphasize the diversity of Black material culture.

The display transcends a narrative that only draws attention to the victimization of Black lives throughout the diaspora. Black Lives Matter reminds us that this singular perspective assuages white guilt and preserves white ignorance. For example, the image of the lynched Black man becomes evidence to prove progress—one says naively under one’s breath, “at least we don’t do that anymore”—that renders many unwilling to see the conditions that contribute to the ongoing violence done against Black lives.

Claudia Rankine writes, “You can’t put the past behind you. It’s buried in you; it’s turned your flesh into its own cupboard” (Rankine 63). A library is like a cupboard. But the past also lives and breathes in a library, inspiring us to “facilitate the types of connections necessary to encourage social action and engagement” (Black Lives Matter).

 

Works Cited

“Freedom and Justice for All Black Lives.” Black Lives Matter, blacklivesmatter.com. Accessed 3/2/2017.

Rankine, Claudia. Citizen: An American Lyric. Graywolf Press, 2014.

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Off the Shelf & On Display at Langson Library

Welcome! This is the blog for Off the Shelf & On Display, the newly launched book display in Langson Library. UCI Libraries’ collection of books, journals, magazines, newspapers, videos, and other resources includes more than 4 million items. The goal of Off the Shelf is to highlight the best of these on a variety of themes — since no one, of course, has the time to browse through that many books!

The Off the Shelf display will be conveniently located on the second floor of Langson Library, next to our new books lobby. The theme of each display will reflect the UCI Libraries’ commitment to inclusive excellence. The displays will be curated by the Education and Outreach Department, along with other librarians who specialize in different subject areas. We also are looking for input from students; if you are interested in getting involved, let us know: libeod@uci.edu

On this blog, you’ll find more information about the physical books on display, along with related highlights from our electronic collection of ebooks, videos, and other resources. You’ll also find the full list of display books on our Goodreads account: lib.uci.edu/GR

Our first display — on the theme of #BlackLivesMatters — will launch later this month; check back soon for more information!