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Cherry Friday Greetings,
There are several items to pass along today!
Field Visits. SCRLC’s round of field visits has begun! Diane Capalongo is contacting members to arrange the visits, if you are a director, be on the lookout for an email from her. The visits are generally an hour, though we can run longer--we just want to be respectful of your time! If you would like a visit and do not want to wait for Diane’s call, please contact her! We can also visit for other reasons, e.g., consultations, focus groups, ideation, etc.!
NYS Digital Equity Plan. As you know, the ConnectAll Office has released the NYS Digital Equity Plan. The public comment period is open now through December 6. It is crucial that they hear from the library and museum community, and that comments are sent through the portal. Our Southern Tier Digital Equity Coalition, of which SCRLC is a founding member, will hold an informational session on Monday, November 27 at 3 p.m. In addition to a quick walk through of the plan and portal, we’ll be discussing some of the results and process for our region. See below to register.
In related news, a couple of days ago the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to adopt rules to prevent and eliminate digital discrimination. See the National Digital Inclusion Alliance’s (NDIA) blog post for more information.
Generative AI. This week I attended DCMO’s School Library System Advisory Council meeting and stayed on to hear Betsy Hartnett’s, Assistant Director of Instructional Technologies and Coordinator of DCMO’s School Library System, and Katie Charles’, Otselic Valley CSD School Librarian, present on generative AI. It was wonderfully interactive and there was much conversation and many insights. They’d recently spoken on generative AI at the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) conference in Florida. Well done, Betsy and Katie! Re: AI, a few weeks ago I attended the AI in Library Services webinar, hosted by the New England chapter of the Special Library Association. Here is a link to Yale University’s new AI guidelines for staff that had been shared.
Land Acknowledgments. Last night I attended the Two-Row Wampum treaty program at Southworth Library in Dryden. SCRLC was a cosponsor. Over 50 people attended in person and 60+ were online. The speakers were Chief Spencer Ohsgoñ:da’ Lyons (Onondaga Hawk Clan), Sachem Sam George (Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫʼ Bear Clan), and Mike Bishop of Cornell. The Two Row Wampum treaty, which dates to 1613, can be visualized as a canoe and a ship, both moving forward through the water together, side-by-side in peace, friendship, and perpetuity.
There were many questions, including one about land acknowledgments. While none of the speakers said, “no, don’t do them,” the thought was that they are often only performative. A couple of audience members were vehemently opposed to them, one indicating that they did not do enough to acknowledge the atrocities and genocide inflicted on Native peoples.
In response to this question, Sachem Sam George suggested that we clean up our own property first and then help our neighbors and go from there. He also mentioned the action-oriented approach of Binghamton University when they honored the Indigenous connection to the land through the interplanting of a Three Sisters Garden (Corn, Beans, Squash).
SCRLC staff continue to ponder our land acknowledgment. We always include action items, but it never feels enough. Plus, as an organization, there is only so much we can do. We can inform, which SCRLC is good at via our LibGuides, columns like this one, conversations, etc. As individuals, we can do even more. As Sachem George said (paraphrasing), “Remember We the People. The US constitution begins that way. It is powerful."
Some actions, speaking of such......the National Native American Boarding School Coalition is advocating in Congress for the establishment of the Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act, which would establish a federal commission to conduct a full inquiry into the assimilative polices of U.S. Indian boarding schools. Read more about the Commission here. Even if an organization cannot join or support (and maybe some can), individuals can choose to support or get involved. The American Indian Library Association can always use support. All people, including non-Indigenous, are welcome to join AILA. Even the portal for the NYS Digital Equity Plan asks if you are commenting as an individual or representing an organization. Same with the Controlled Digital Lending signatories. We may not have organizational approval, but it doesn’t mean that our opinions as individuals cannot be included.
More locally, there are many opportunities to support Indigenous communities, e.g., the Tiny Seed Project that supports the Gayogo̱hó꞉nǫʼ, the Cayuga SHARE Farm, the Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation (NOON), schools like The Onondaga Nation School, or Ganondagan.
We can also keep learning. If you find yourself with some spare time on Sunday afternoon (11/19), at 4:30 tune into Healing this Broken Land: Indigenous Leadership in the Face of Climate Crisis. The description: “We will shed light on the often-overlooked impact climate change has on Indigenous Peoples globally. And make the connection between the Doctrine of Discovery as the root of colonization, capitalist exploitation and the current climate crisis.”
The program is sponsored by Tonatierra, American Indian Law Alliance, Eastern Woodlands Rematriation, Honor the Earth, Hawai'i Peace and Justice Center, Indigenous Solidarity Network, Catalyst Project, Showing Up for Racial Justice, Nuns & Nones Land Justice, and 350.org.
ASL, Spanish Interpretation & Live Captions will be provided.
Registration: tinyurl.com/HealingBrokenLand.
Please have a safe and peaceful Thanksgiving holiday.
Yours in partnership,
Mary-Carol Lindbloom
Executive Director
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