This isn't necessarily an upbeat Slice of Life. It is a reflection of something that happened about a week and a half ago that I am still thinking about.
I went to a children's literature event that was fantastic. See my celebrations post here for more about the fun. I fangirled about meeting authors of books that I have loved. It was also great hearing from authors that were new to me. Being in a room with so many authors and readers gave me chills. People were chattering about books, authors, and connecting with each other. A buzz of happiness and excitement filled the air. As you may suspect though, there was another perspective that I haven't shared yet.
The event was happening near Chicago which is a tremendously diverse city. As I gazed around the room, that is not what I saw. Granted, we were in a suburb, but the room contained very few people who appeared anything other than white. I noticed it in passing, but really thought about it more deeply after I saw an author's name in the bulletin. I knew she was not white and the thought came to me, "Well, it will be easy to find her in here." Not too long after that, I noticed this message on Twitter:
I'm at a big Illinois book event. Sorry gotta just say this, it's 99% white.
— Nnedi Okorafor, PhD (@Nnedi) February 15, 2014
Yes, librarians in the midwest are probably not very culturally diverse, but there were teachers there too and we were not far from Chicago. I don't know what the answer is, but I believe it is an issue that needs to be addressed. I sent an email to the organizers because I am not sure if they are thinking about this. Being white, I only thought about it in passing when I first walked in. It only really hit me when I thought about how I might feel as a person of color walking into the room. This was an amazing event and I hope to attend again, but I also hope for some change.
You bring up an interesting question. I was actually at a conference recently and noticed the same thing. It seems perhaps our profession needs to encourage and seek more diversity. Your post gives us something to think about.
ReplyDeleteCathy
Much to think about in your post. Diversity is such a hot topic. How can we foster our students of color so that they will think about reading related professions later in life? Thanks for making me think.
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