Navigating library collections, black culture, and current events

Abstract

The work of preserving content is at the heart of what libraries and archives do best. Beyond preserving collections, historical literacy as a companion concept to the LIS standard of information literacy can give collections a second life, thereby sparking public interests, increasing contemporary relevance, and advancing a critical understanding of events in our nation’s history. Looking at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture’s collection of The Negro Motorist Green Book in relation to the contemporary social justice activism, this paper will discuss ways in which the archival collection was used to educate visitors regarding the historical roots of recent discourse around the perils of traveling while Black.