Dr. Wayne Wiegand recently noted on the LHRT list that the Tougaloo Nine, the brave protestors who helped integrate Mississippi’s public libraries, had received coverage on one of MSNBC’s most popular shows:
The Jackson-Hinds County (MS) Public Library hosted a celebration of the Tougaloo Nine recently, and Rachel Maddow highlighted their event on her program.
Dr. Wiegand and his wife have book coming out in March 2018 about the integration of Southern public libraries, and they are encouraging other public libraries to commemorate the advocates of integration.
They are also encouraging library history writers to research the issue of race in libraries. Dr. Wiegand notes that in his book he and his wife “cover only a fraction of the 1960s public library desegregation efforts in the South, almost nothing about the issue of race in 20th century librarianship’s practices in other parts of the country. We encourage you all to give these subjects serious consideration as you all plan future research agendas; there are scores of stories about race and librarianship that remain uncovered and thus unaddressed.” Let’s rally to his call and publish some papers on the blog about this key issue.
Best Wishes,
Brett