NOTICE: This blog was updated on June 8, 2022 to include updated Pride resources and event information.

Happy Pride!

At Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, we are on a mission to improve lives and build a stronger community. In conjunction with that value, we believe that every person, regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, identity, gender or gender identity, level of education, socio-economic status, etc., has the right to have their voices heard and to be their authentic selves without fear of retribution or castigation from society. It is both a privilege and an honor to stand beside the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, yearlong, as members, friends and allies.

Proud Beginnings

On June 28, 1969, the New York Police Department raided the historic Stonewall Inn, a gay bar, in Manhattan. Police raids on gay establishments were common in the 1950s and 1960s when social and political anti-gay and homophile efforts flourished. Gay bars were places of refuge where LGBT people could safely be in community without fear of public ridicule or police aggression. However, on that fateful morning, patrons of the Stonewall Inn decided to fight back against the police and the injustices against them. The week-long riots, which coincided with the civil rights and feminist movements, became the catalyzing moments that birthed the gay liberation movement.

Progression of Liberties

Just six months after the uprising at Stonewall, numerous grassroots gay and human rights organizations began to form across the U.S. such as the Gay Liberation Front (GLF) and the Gay Activists Alliance (GAA). Since the Stonewall riots, the LGBT community has made many strides against injustice. In October 1979, the first National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights took place in D.C. which drew an estimated attendance of 75,000-125,000 supporters. On March 2, 1982, Wisconsin became the first U.S. state to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation and in April 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot ban same-sex marriage. For a current list of LGBT rights, milestones and fast facts click here.



A Celebration of LGBT History

In addition to national pride celebrations in June and locally in August (moved in 2021 to October), October was established as Gay and Lesbian History Month by a Missouri high school teacher, Rodney Wilson, in 1994.  Rodney worked with other teachers and community leaders to secure a month where public school was in session, and everyone could celebrate and learn about gay and lesbian history. According to LGBTHistoryMonth.com, October was selected for its existing tradtions, such as National Coming Out Day which falls annually on October 11. To see this year's LGBT History Month icons, click here.

Additional Information

In 1999, the U.S. National Park Service added the Stonewall Inn to the National Register of Historic Places and in 2016, President Barack Obama designated the inn a national monument.

For literary resources and suggest LGBT titles from the Library, be sure to check out the LGBT, Raising Rainbows: Parenting Books for LGBTQ+  Parents, Children, And Allies and LGBTQIA Teen booklists. 

To celebrate Rainbow Book Month™ with the American Library Association, click here.

To learn more about LGBT rights and how you can get involved, please visit the American Civil Liberties Union.

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This blog was written by Asha Ellison, marketing & communications specialist at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

Sources:

Images and information from History.com, LGBTHistoryMonth.com and The Stonewall Inn.

Welcome to the second week of Summer Break! We hope your summer is off to a great start and you're recording all of the time you've spent reading and learning.  As a reminder, Summer Break  2019  began on June 1, 2019  and will run through August 10, 2019.  If you have any questions about Summer Break, check out how the program works and sign up here.  

Looking for Reading Suggestions?  

We all know reading is important, but did you know that kids and teens who do not read over the summer may experience 2-3 months of learning loss by the time school starts in the fall? Reading is just as important for adults because it keeps adult brains flexible and nimble. Plus, adults who read serve as great role models for kids. That's why we recommend 20 minutes of reading per day for everyone all summer.   

We know that it can be hard to come up with a list of great books to read, so Charlotte Mecklenburg Library staff are here to help. We have updated our reading lists for kids, teens and adults so that you can keep your brains active. Staff at your local library can also help you with book recommendations. Continue reading and remember to enter your reading time in your Summer Break account!  

Teen Book Finder by YALSA - Teens searching for their next great read have a new tool linked within the Resources page. The Teen Book Finder by YALSA facilitates searching of YALSA Award winners, books and media lists. Teens can search over 4,000 titles specifically written for teens 12 to 18 years of age by award, author, genre or award year. Cover art and brief blurbs are sure to help connect teens with their next great reads! 

Novelist Plus - Still feeling stumped? Readers of all ages are sure to connect with a terrific title by searching within Novelist Plus, also available through the Resources page. Search your favorite title, genre, or author to find a read-alike, browse subject-specific lists or try getting really detailed with an advanced search for your next read. Novelist Plus has something for even the most discerning of readers!  

Exciting Programs - Though our Summer Break 2019 program can be completed entirely online, our libraries are hosting some wonderful programs this summer. Check out some of our upcoming programs at branches around the county on the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library program calendar.  

Comments? Questions?  

Are you having problems with the Summer Break 2019 website or your account?  Do you have questions about the program? Feel free to stop by your local library branch for assistance, give us a call at 704-416-0101 or email us at  [email protected]  for help or feedback.  

Would you ever consider treating your appreciation of reading mystery books like a college course? You may be exposed to a wide-range of historical and modern mysteries in “The Secrets of Great Mystery and Suspense Fiction” video series available on Kanopy. Kanopy is a video streaming service, offering more than 30,000 independent and documentary films. “The Great Courses” series is included with a cardholder’s access to the service. The series contains 36 college-level lectures in digital formats and this course about crime fiction.  

Hosted by David Schmid, an associate professor of English at the University of Buffalo, the lectures average 31 minutes each. Well-versed on the subjects, Schmid has written and edited several books and publications about crime and popular fiction.  

During the first lecture, various genres of fiction are mentioned. Schmid identifies mystery fiction as the catch-all for all types whether "cozy," "hard-boiled," "historical" or others with, typically, a "whodunit" theme. Conversely, suspense fiction "arguably contains no mystery at all, because we know the identity of the criminal from the beginning of the story," Schmid said. In any regard, Schmid concludes that these books "have some element of mystery that's meant to challenge and to entertain us."

The course begins with an examination of the first actual mystery novels including a focus on the trendsetter Edgar Allan Poe with his 1841 story, The Murders in the Rue Morgue. From this publication came elements borrowed repeatedly for mystery books including an eccentric amateur detective, an admiring sidekick and crime in an urban setting. Schmid discusses other writers’ contributions in the first lecture titled "Mystery Fiction's Secret Formula," but focuses on Poe, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie. Those three authors, with their detectives, C. Auguste Dupin for Poe, Sherlock Holmes for Doyle and Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple for Christie, emphasized their use of intelligence and logic to overcome any difficult mystery.

The breadth of scope for the following individual episodes is impressive. There are exciting topic titles such as “The Criminal,” “The Sidekick,” “The Locked Room,” “The Dime Novel,” “The Femme Fatale” and 30 more. The familiar subjects of detectives, private eyes and women in crime are also presented. Additionally, Schmid’s lectures stress the genre’s push to be innovative and remain popular. That results in crime fiction with different ethnic groups, the LGBT community and different settings around the world. The mystery reader is permitted, Schmid says, an armchair view of the world with a look at different societies through the issue of handling crime.     

Also, the professor conducts his lectures from a set which could serve as the stage for a 1930s private-eye office--perhaps, the office for Dashiell Hammett’s Sam Spade? As Schmid talks and occasionally walks around the set, one may notice an old manual typewriter, trench coat resting on a coat rack near wooden Venetian blinds and a chestnut-wood colored set walls.

A Charlotte Mecklenburg Library card opens a world of possibilities with countless materials, digital resources, programs and services available at no cost. This summer, thanks to a partnership with Carowinds, library cardholders can also get discounted tickets to the Carolinas’ favorite theme park during Library Week, July 22-28, 2019.

Celebrate libraries and literacy in our community, and take advantage of this special benefit!

Purchase your discounted tickets

Want to purchase discounted tickets for the special Library Week? In 2018, hundreds of cardholders took advantage of this special promotion!

Charlotte Mecklenburg Library cardholders can click the button below and login with the :

username CM

password LIBRARY (case sensitive)

Discounted tickets are good Monday, July 22 - Sunday, July 28, 2019.

PURCHASE CAROWINDS LIBRARY WEEK TICKETS

No library card? No problem!

Don’t have a library card? Free library cards are available to residents of Mecklenburg County, to those who live outside of Mecklenburg County but are Mecklenburg County property owners, and to students (of any age) enrolled in any private or public school in Mecklenburg County.

Apply for a library card using the form below, and take advantage of not only the Carowinds discount, but the many, many other benefits of a Charlotte Mecklenburg Library card.

Continue the fun all summer long

The Library and Carowinds formed a partnership in 2018 to encourage the Charlotte-Mecklenburg community to read and learn during Summer Break: Read, Learn, Explore, the Library’s summer learning program.

Summer Break participants who have entered their Charlotte Mecklenburg Library card number or One Access ID in the library card field on their account, complete the program by reading 20 hours OR by reading at least 10 hours and completing 10 learning activities AND log activities for 10 out of 10 weeks are eligible to receive a free ticket to Carowinds (while supplies last).

TRACK READING TIME AND ACTIVITIES ONLINE

Summer Break is made possible by a partnership with Carowinds. Additional support for the programs comes from Wendy's and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation. A special thank you to Carowinds for providing the additional benefit of discounted tickets to library cardholders in celebration of literacy!

Allegra Westbrooks was the first African American public library supervisor in North Carolina. Ms. Westbrooks grew up in Fayetteville, NC where she spent her childhood peeking through the windows of white-only public libraries. Her mother, a schoolteacher, passed a love of books down to her. She attended Fayetteville State Teachers College and Atlanta University where she received a Bachelor of Science in library services. 

Brevard Street Library, 1944 



When she moved to Charlotte in 1947, only two libraries existed for the Black community: Brevard Street Library and its “sub-branch” in Fairview Homes Public Housing on Oaklawn Avenue. 

Citizens Advisory Council meets with Allegra Westbrooks, Head of Negro Library Services  

Charlotte Mecklenburg Library (then Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County) hired Ms. Westbrooks in 1947 as the head of Negro Library Services at the Brevard Street Library. To attract the Black community to these two branches, Ms. Westbrooks launched a campaign to host prominent speakers at Black churches “to sell the gospel of books and reading.” She also visited the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) and Girl Scouts to form coalitions to increase usage of the Black libraries. 

Female librarians assisting children on the bookmobile, 1966 

Ms. Westbrooks influenced many people to go to libraries through her public efforts. Many community members remember her visting them with a bookmobile to inspire them to read. Ms. Westbrooks said, “It is gratifying, when you’ll be on the street and see somebody, and they say, 'I used the book mobile. I want you to meet my four children. I insist that they read'.” She would also pick up books that the Black community requested at Main Library once a week.

Man entering Brevard Street Library, 1948

The library system was desegregated in 1956, but the Brevard Street Branch continued to operate until December of 1961 when it was closed and demolished as part of the Brooklyn area urban redevelopment project.

Ms. Westbrooks was promoted Head of Acquisitions in 1950 at Main Library. Charlotte Mecklenburg Library officially integrated on November 19, 1956.  Hoyt R. Galvin, director of libraries 1940-1971, spoke to her undeniable skills and knowledge:

“Her recommendations were good, and I was pleased to have her join our staff, but I didn’t realize the library and the community were getting a jewel. She carries a major responsibility for the countywide public library system in coordination of adult book selection and is head of all book acquisitions. In a day when 1,000 new book titles are published every day, this is a major task. There are subject specialists who know the literature of their field in a superior fashion, but Miss Westbrooks is the most knowledgeable all-around book specialist in North Carolina.”

Ms. Westbrooks’ career with the Library spanned 35 years, but her legacy continues today. She is not only honored for her incredible achievements as a pioneer in the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library system, but also for the many extracurricular activities and organizations she served on. In 1969, she was named “Outstanding Career Woman of 1969” at The Gold Rose Awards hosted by the White House Inn. 

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This blog was written by Robinson-Spangler Carolina Room staff at Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

 

Sources

Borden, Pat. “Retiring Worker symbol of change in local library.” The Charlotte Observer, February 10, 1984.

Osborne, Dorothy. “Top Career Woman Is ‘Giant For Good’.” The Charlotte Observer, October 17, 1969.

Perlmutti, David. “A love of books, nurtured by mother.” Black History Month, Crossing the Barrier, February 4, 2009.

This blog was written as part of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library's Black Lives Matter program initiative. Learn  more about the program and corresponding events here.

I recall my first inaugural experience in 2009. My entire family (parents, sister, cousins, aunts, and uncles) traveled to Washington, DC to attend special events and witness President Barack Obama take the Oath of Office with First Lady Michelle Obama, and daughters, Malia and Sasha. As a mom, it was important to have my sons experience this historic moment and see a President who looked like them. As a family, we also knew the importance of sharing in this special time together particularly for our youngest generation who were filled with awe and excitement.

Fast forward to Inauguration Day 2021. We reminisced and re-lived how we felt then and rejoiced again as we watched Madam Vice President Kamala Harris take her Oath of Office surrounded by her beautiful family. Although we were unable to gather in person, this occasion was enormous in nature with history being reshaped once again.

Just like my sons got to see their reflection in President Obama, now girls can see their reflection in Vice President Harris proving that the narrative can change. What a sight to behold! What a fervent expression of how every child can feel and see unlimited possibilities.

Historically, Black, brown, and indigenous people have often been relegated and made to feel that moments like this are reserved for just a few. Not so, I declare! These moments are for ALL.

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This blog post was written by Helen Hope Kimbrough. Helen is a reading evangelist, literacy advocate, and racial equity champion. She serves as the Second Vice Chair of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation.

Sometimes it’s just nice to sit back and listen to someone read you a story. That’s just what Library on Call plans to do.

Library on Call is an outreach service of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library where customers can call a dedicated number to hear pre-recorded, frequently updated messages tailored for our senior audience.

Selections include short stories, poems, chapters from famous and popular books, jokes and more. At least one option will be offered in Spanish. Selections range in time from one to 30 minutes long. They can be heard any time, day or night, seven days a week.

To hear a story for yourself or play one for someone else, just dial (980) 331-7700. You'll hear an automated menu. Make your selection, sit back, and enjoy.

This blog was written as part of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library's Black Lives Matter program initiative. Learn  more about the program and corresponding events here.

I recently snapped a photo of myself and three other Black male co-workers as we were the only staff in the facility at the time. It was a moment of pride — and perhaps reckoning — for me to realize that in the 20+ years that I’ve worked in libraries, this was the only time I could recall working alongside all Black male colleagues. Truthfully, it was my first time working alongside all male colleagues, but the fact that we were all Black men was glaring. It took me back to a conversation I had a few years ago, when a young Black male asked me where I worked. When I told him where and what I did (I referred to myself as a librarian), his response was incredulous. He shared with me that he didn’t know of any librarians that looked “like him.” It was a sad acknowledgment, but not necessarily a surprising one.

From L-R, Kyle Hearns, Reggie Villegas, Kenya Sloan, LaJuan Pringle

Librarianship is one of the many career fields where Black representation lags. As Black Americans make up roughly 13% of the country’s population, 9% of librarians are Black according to the American Library Association, and out of credentialed librarians nationwide, Black male representation among this group is less than 1%. This issue has become well-known throughout the profession. The lack of Black males in librarianship has been well documented in numerous discussions and academic studies throughout the years. Some of the reasons cited for lack of Black males in the profession include:  

• Black males may not see librarianship as a viable option when they are young. It’s during these years that many of us start to think about what we want to do or who we want to be in life. As I look back on my own story, my first job in high school was a library page. If it hadn’t been for my library work in high school, I’m certain I would have never entertained the thought of becoming a librarian as an adult.
• Librarianship is a female dominated profession. Over 80% of librarians are women. There’s the belief that because women represent the overwhelming majority of librarians, it’s viewed as “woman’s” job. However, once you get past these stereotypes, librarianship is a great profession for anyone regardless of gender.

The lack of representation of Black males continues to be an issue for the library profession, but on the day we took the picture above, for me, it was a vision of what library staff could look like. In this vision, libraries would employ staff that reflect and, in many cases, look like the communities they serve. If I ever again see the young man I mentioned earlier, I’d like to invite him to West Boulevard for a visit. It would be great for him to see library employees who look like him.

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This blog post was written by LaJuan Pringle, branch leader at West Boulevard Library.