Publication Date
4-2021
Document Type
Book Chapter
Organizational Units
University Libraries
Keywords
Multiculturalism, Libraries, Language, Language barrier
Abstract
In Part of Our Lives: A People's History of the American Public Library, author and library historian Wayne A. Wiegand describes how the mass migration of seven million southern and eastern European migrants between 1893 and 1917 shaped public libraries. “As neighborhoods changed ethnic and racial profile, the public library – main or branch- often became a place where newcomers assimilated.”1 This assimilationist praxis, specifically when it comes to the conscription of the English language, is problematic for library workers and patrons for whom English is not their first or only language and who want to see themselves reflected in library collections, services, and the workforce. Library and Information Science literature rarely mentions language or linguistic diversity despite the globalization of information and the increasing diversity of the United States. Many studies include language as a subsidiary as opposed to salient point. Even so, language is often framed in problematic ways, reflecting how libraries have historically functioned as places where immigrants learn the English language and assimilate to American culture.
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Publication Statement
This book chapter was originally published as:
Solis, D., & Espinoza, J. (2021.) Entre mundos y fronteras: An exploration of linguistic visibility and value in libraries. In A. Ndumu (Ed.), Borders and belonging: Critical examinations of library approaches toward immigrants (Ser. Critical Race Studies and Multiculturalism in Library and Information Studies). Library Juice Press.
Rights Holder
Denisse Solis, Jesus Espinoza
Provenance
Received from author
File Format
application/pdf
Language
English (eng)
Extent
21 pgs
File Size
597 KB
Volume
48
First Page
1
Last Page
23
Recommended Citation
Solis, Denisse and Espinoza, Jesus, "Entre Mundos y Fronteras: An Exploration of Linguistic Visibility and Value in Libraries" (2021). University Libraries: Faculty Scholarship. 48.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/libraries_facpub/48
Included in
Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Library and Information Science Commons, Modern Languages Commons, Other Linguistics Commons, Sociology of Culture Commons