On September 30, 2021, Doc Chat analyzed a very different kind of primary source than we usually do: the Library catalog.

A weekly series from NYPL's Center for Research in the Humanities, Doc Chat pairs a NYPL curator or specialist and a scholar to discuss evocative digitized items from the Library's collections and brainstorm innovative ways of teaching with them. In Episode thirty-Two, NYPL's Paloma Celis Carbajal and Jelicia Jimenez were joined by Bronwen Maxson of the University of Oregon to discuss how issues of identity, particularly as relates to immigrant communities in the U.S., have shaped discovery tools such as library catalogs in far-reaching ways. They also examined the role of student activism in catalyzing change.

Paloma Celis Carbajal is the Curator for Latin American, Iberian, and U.S. Latino Collections at The New York Public Library. Jelicia Jimenez is a graduate assistant at NYPL for the Change the Subject project and is completing her Masters in Information and Library Science at SUNY Buffalo. Bronwen Maxson is Coordinator for Undergraduate Engagement and Instructional Services and Subject Specialist for Latin American Studies, Spanish, and Portuguese at the University of Oregon.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Below are some handy links to materials and sources suggested in the episode.

Episode Thirty-Two: Change the Subject Resources  

NYPL LibGuide, The Change the Subject Project at NYPL, BPL, and BookOps, 2021.

SUNY Libraries Consortium, Research Guide for the SUNY Change the Subject Project, 2021.

Dartmouth University Library, Change the Subject: A Documentary About Labels, Libraries, and Activism. (2019).

Episode Thirty-Two: Additional Readings and Resources  

P. Armstrong, Bloom’s Taxonomy. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching (2010). 

Emily Drabinski, "Queering the Catalog: Queer Theory and the Politics of Correction," Library Quarterly 83:2 (April 2013), 94-111.

Anne Ford, "Conscientious Cataloging: Librarians Work to Advance Equity in Subject Headings," American Libraries Magazine, September 1, 2020.

Antony Charles Foskett, The Subject Approach to Information (Library Association Pub., 1996). 

Steven A. Knowlton, "Three Decades Since Prejudices and Antipathies: A Study of the Changes in the Library of Congress Subject Headings,"Cataloging & Classification Quarterly 40: 2(2005), 123-145.

Jessis Loyer, "Indigenous Information Literacy: nêhiyaw Kinship Enabling Self-Care in Research," in The Politics of Theory and the Practice of Critical Librarianship, Nicholson and Seale, eds., (Library Juice Press, 2018), 145-156.

Lena Thomson [@LenaGT] (Tweet, November 13, 2018. “My first infographic! Key elements and tips for implementing #culturallysustainingpedagogy Thanks to colleagues and mentors for feedback through my course at @the_ptc1 @beth_puma Continued feedback welcome! #SWISEAL #eal #esol #dynamicbilinguals #lifelonglearner”. Twitter, November 13, 2018.

Rachel Stein, "Latinx/e/a/o Studies Library Guide," Tulane University Libraries, 2021. 

WNYC Studios, On the Media, "Organizing Chaos" September 20, 2021.

Working Narratives, "Storytelling and Social Change: A Strategy Guide." 

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Doc Chat episodes take place on Zoom every Thursday at 3:30 PM. Check out upcoming episodes on NYPL's calendar,  and make sure you don't miss an episode by signing up for NYPL's Research newsletter, which will include links to register. A video of each episode will be posted on the Doc Chat Channel of NYPL's blog shortly after the program. There you can also explore videos and resources for past episodes. See you at the next Doc Chat!