The D铆a de Muertos Ofrenda at Rosenthal Library

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By: Eric Silberberg, Instructional Design and Education Librarian

Image courtesy QC Creative Services

From October 28th to November 24th, the Carole A. and Norman Barham Rotunda in Rosenthal Library became home to a D铆a de Muertos ofrenda (altar). The altar was designed and built by students enrolled in Prof. Sara Hinojos鈥� MEDST 225: Ethnicity in American Media course. These students first researched the origins and commercialization of D铆a de Muertos. Their work culminated in five distinct sections of the altar. These sections were dedicated not only to family members but also addressed broader themes such as social justice, personal stories of family immigration, and tributes to cultural luminaries important to Latinx communities.

Image courtesy QC Creative Services

鈥婦铆a de Muertos is a Mexican holiday where families traditionally gather to pay respects and remember friends and family members who have died. Families customarily build home altars adorned with marigold flowers (cempaz煤chitl), decorative skulls (calaveras), and the departed’s favorite worldly foods and belongings.

 

Image courtesy QC Creative Services

 

The holiday’s origins are debated with some tracing its roots to Indigenous Mexican traditions and others viewing it as a local expression of Christian practices. At its core is a profound recognition of the continuous cycle of life and death. During the late 1960s, Mexican American artists in Southern California began transforming the tradition, turning the ofrenda into a public display of cultural pride, grief, and political expression in community centers, parks, and libraries. Even as D铆a de Muertos becomes more commercialized in the U.S. context, its spirit makes space for meaningful expression of shared, intercultural experiences of the 黑料专区 community.

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Banned Books Week 2025

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By: Eric Silberberg, Instructional Design and Education Librarian

October 5鈥�11 is Banned Books Week, and this year the Department of Elementary and Early Childhood Education (EECE) and 黑料专区 Library teamed up to spotlight banned and challenged books. The entire QC community is invited to see the display in front of the EECE office in Powdermaker Hall and borrow books from the display on the main floor of the Library.听听

Banned Books Week celebrates the freedom to read and the value of access to information by spotlighting books that have been challenged or banned in schools and libraries across the country. The two QC displays feature picture books, young adult novels, and classic works of U.S. literature that have all faced challenges or state-sanctioned bans.听听

The American Library Association (ALA) started Banned Books Week in 1982. While book challenges have been a part of U.S. political culture since the nation’s founding, the ALA has documented an explosion in the number of bans since 2020.听听

We might assume that book bans don’t happen in New York. However, the library display features three prominent court cases that occurred in New York that addressed the limits of young people’s freedom to read.听

Banned Books Week display at EECE Office in Powdermaker Hall

 

Featured New York Court Cases on the Freedom to Read

 

Board of Education, Island Trees Union Free School District v. Pico (1982)听

• Key Question: Is banning books from school libraries a First Amendment violation?听

• Facts of the Case: The Island Trees School Board ordered 11 books removed from school libraries, labeling them 鈥渁nti-American鈥� and 鈥渇ilthy.鈥� Students, led by Steven Pico, sued the Board.听

• Outcome: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that school boards cannot restrict books in libraries simply because they disagree with the ideas contained within, affirming the library鈥檚 role as a center for free inquiry.听

• 听

Banned Books Week display in Rosenthal Library

Rosenberg v. Board of Education (1949)听

• Key Question: Should books be removed from school curricula for promoting negative stereotypes?听

• Facts of the Case: A group of parents sued the NYC Board of Education to remove Charles Dickens鈥� Oliver Twist and Shakespeare鈥檚 The Merchant of Venice, arguing they were anti-Semitic on account of their portrayals of Jewish characters, Fagin and Shylock.听

• Outcome: The New York State Supreme Court dismissed the petition. It ruled that a book鈥檚 literary and educational value should prevail unless its apparent purpose is to promote hatred, arguing that education, not censorship, fights prejudice.听

• 听

Banned Books Week display in Rosenthal Library

Ginsberg v. New York (1968)听

• Key Question: Does a person’s age limit what books and magazines they can legally purchase?听

• Facts of the Case: The parents of a 16-year-old boy sent him to purchase sexually suggestive magazines from a store owned by Sam Ginsberg. The parents鈥� goal was to incriminate Mr. Ginsberg under a New York law that prohibited the sale of material 鈥渉armful to minors.鈥�听

• Outcome: The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the New York law. It ruled that while the material wasn’t obscene for adults, the state has a compelling interest in protecting the welfare of minors by regulating the materials sold to them.听

• 听

 

 

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Music Library & First Year Experience Program Host Vinyl LP Listening Party

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By: Alex Crowley, Substitute Visual & Performing Arts-Music Librarian

On Wednesday, September 4, 2024, the Music Library re-opened after hours (5-7pm) to host students from the First Year Experience (FYE) program for a Vinyl LP Listening Party. More than a dozen students, accompanied by FYE staffers Jorge Ivan Velez, Saarah Ahsan, and Elisheva Conway, joined me for an introduction to the Music Library and a basic turntable tutorial session that included some 鈥渃rate digging鈥� through selections taken from the Music Library鈥檚 vinyl record collection.

Vinyl LP Listening Party

Vinyl LP Listening Party

I have been conducting an inventory and reorganizing the long-neglected record collection since early Spring, so hosting this event with FYE was a great opportunity to introduce students to both the music collection and the analog music-listening experience.

The Music Library鈥檚 pair of Technics SL-1200 MK2 turntables each have external adapters for four sets of headphones, making it possible for multiple people to simultaneously listen to the same record. Attending students picked a few albums to check out and listen to in small groups. They had questions about the various technical functions (pitch adjustment, arm weight, skate control) on the turntable device and remarked upon the 鈥渃rackling鈥� noise of the records鈥攎ore noticeable on some albums than others.

Technics SL-1200 MK2

Engaging with the LPs is a reminder that for decades these records were the only game in town, so the library would have held multiple copies of many of these albums. One student who selected a Billie Holliday album noted that Holliday鈥檚 work is largely absent from streaming services, and it is likely that among the approximately 5,000 LPs in the collection are many others that cannot be found on any streaming service.

LP Selections

Now that the inventory of the collection is complete and the improved finding aid for the LPs, is functional, a future project for the Music Library may lie in taking stock of rare LPs and those that are not available digitally. In the meantime, all QC students are welcome to browse the LP collection and come to the Music Library for a record break.

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• Title: Let鈥檚 Talk About 鈥淚T鈥�- Race, Gender, Sexuality, Religion, Mental Health
• Date: April 17, 2023
• Time: 12:15pm 鈥� 1:30pm
• Location: Rosenthal Library Level 3 Tanenbaum Space

It鈥檚 okay to not understand something. Sometimes we just need to sit down and talk about 鈥渋t鈥�. This workshop is designed to bring people together to discuss everyday issues and have uncomfortable conversations.

Set with the concept of speed dating, participants will be paired to have a timed one-on-one discussion on a variety of topics that include race, gender, sexuality, religion, mental health, and other topics, to ask each other questions so that they can learn about issues that they are unfamiliar with. This is an opportunity to talk, listen and learn about the differences that make us unique in our own ways.

Come join us as we get comfortable with being uncomfortable and let鈥檚 talk about 鈥渋t鈥�!

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Event: National Poetry Month in the Archives: The Chapbook Collection And the Launch of Award-Winning Chapbook Lest We All Get Clipped by Joseph Gross
Date & Time: April 24, 2023, 7pm
Location: Rosenthal Library’s Tannenbaum Room 300i

QC MFA alum Joseph Gross will read from his debut poetry chapbook Lest We All Get Clipped.  In this collection, he explores our innate divinity through both ecclesiastical and (extra)ordinary experiences. The poems wrestle with faith, expression, and urban life “because / in the city / there’s not much / distance between / ravage & ravish.” After the reading, fellow alum and publisher Peter Vanderberg will speak about how and why he started this press.

The Birdhouse Chapbook Prize is awarded to an alum from the and published by Ghostbird Press. Founder Peter Vanderberg, a poet and educator, was inspired by CUNY’s Chapbook festivals ten years ago and has been publishing for nearly as long. He recognized the importance of the chapbook as a format that often publishes a writer’s first collection, often presents theme-based work as well as texts that may be offbeat and/or experimental. Ghostbird publishes all genres and includes art alongside the texts. Their lineup includes early work by writers such as Rajiv Mohabir as well as an unusual hybrid collection by former New York State poet laureate Alicia Ostriker. Last year, Vanderberg generously donated all of the Ghostbird chapbooks to the QC Chapbook Archive and many will be on display.

The is a unique program that was founded nearly twenty years ago by professors in the English Dept. Students work closely with award-winning full-time faculty writers and benefit from taking classes that include cross-genre work. In such a way, the students get to know classmates outside their genre of focus and become adept in commenting on texts outside their genre of focus–whether poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, or translation. And, speaking of literary translation, the QC MFA is one of two programs in the country that has a dedicated MFA track. Whether a student is from the United State or from another country, they feel at home in Queens, the most linguistically diverse place on the planet. Multivocal and multigenre and multifaceted are characteristic of this graduate creative writing program. The Birdhouse Chapbook reading is always a marvelous window into the community of alum, students, and professors.

This reading coincides with poet and QC professor Kimiko Hahn’s craft class “A Chapbook for Every Genre.” She will introduce the event.

Please join us in celebrating the launch of Ghostbird’s latest chapbook, Joseph Gross’ Lest We All Get Clipped.

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Ahead of the World Premiere of at the Kupferberg Center for the Arts, the 黑料专区 Library is honored to present a discussion on the live music and dance performance with its choreographer and director Edisa Weeks. Weeks, an Associate Professor of Dance at 黑料专区, discusses the power of dance and its relationship to political action, her experience as the first artist in residence in the Kupferberg Arts Incubator, and how the research she performed in the James R. Forman Library Collection at the 黑料专区 Library helped shape what became Action Songs/Protest Dances.

The interview was conducted via email between Weeks and the 黑料专区 Visual & Performing Arts Librarian, Assistant Professor Scott R. Davis.

Action Songs/Protest Dances is inspired by the life and work of civil rights activist James Forman. While rooted in an historical figure, the production is also firmly about the present and contemporary struggles to address social justice within the United States. What do you believe the medium of dance is uniquely able to contribute toward facilitating such conversations?

As an artivist (artist/activist) dance is my medium of choice for addressing issues in society. Dance serves many functions. It can be a spiritual practice, a source of exercise and catharsis, an economic signifier, as well as a way to affirm a cultural identity and cultivate a sense of belonging. I鈥檓 interested in how dance can comment on society. I believe that dance can re-vitalize the everyday to reveal something new about ourselves, and the revelation is a seed, an energy, a spark that has the power to enact change.

One of the joys of dancing is it releases serotonin into the brain, which makes people feel good. Communal singing also releases serotonin. On a more basic level, movement helps develop our brains. For example, research is finding that when infants learn to roll from their stomach onto their back, it helps to develop the pituitary brain, crawling develops the mid brain, and walking develops the frontal brain. Our bodies are hard-wired for movement! Dancing has often been integral to protests. The Toyi-Toyi dance was a part of rallies and gatherings in the movement to end apartheid in South Africa. In America in the 1960鈥檚 the twist, the mashed potato, the watusi, which emerged from the Black American community, were picked up by White mainstream culture to become an expression of freedom and rebellion against the conservative, repressive social norms of 1950鈥檚 America.

Archival research does not often immediately come to people鈥檚 minds when thinking of contemporary dance. How did your research within the Forman Archive at the 黑料专区 Library inform your work in this production?

One of my mentors was George Bass who was a playwright, poet, director, and educator. He also was Langston Hughes’s personal secretary. George emphasized a research-to-performance method for creating original devised work. This method for devising work appeals to me as I鈥檓 fascinated by history. I enjoy scratching beneath the surface to understand the meaning and reasoning for why something exists. I鈥檓 interested in knowing what our deepest, darkest, and sweetest desires are, and in creating a work that interrogates those desires, I can begin to process, understand and possibly transform them.

I was intrigued by one of the boxes in the Forman archives, which is filled with social and political pamphlets, what we would now call zines. Several of the pamphlets featured the bold, psychedelic lettering and colors that were popular in the 1960鈥檚. I immediately knew I wanted the poster for Action Songs/Protest Dances to be a throwback to 1960鈥檚 art.

One of the books in the archive 鈥�The Making Of Black Revolutionaries鈥� by Forman, a guidebook for anyone interested in the civil rights movement and understanding what is involved in social justice struggles. Forman writes about how the pressure of being on the front lines advocating against oppression and for social change can take a toll emotionally and mentally. Forman had multiple times when he was brutally beaten by the police and members of the White Citizens Council, for being a Black man who did not genuflect, who was advocating for justice, and questioning oppressive systems in America. Forman had several mental breakdowns, yet was able to recover and keep working for social betterment. Hearing about his struggles with mental health really resonated during the pandemic, as the creative team was navigating the isolation and stress of the pandemic; as well as the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and too many others. I hesitate bringing up mental health as it can be perceived as a weakness and used to denigrate and diminish a person鈥檚 relevance, however, we need to discuss mental health so we can find pathways for care-taking, healing, and wellness. These discussions resulted in the song Pattern Map by Spirit McIntyre, which is about letting go of toxic isms; and the song Body on the Line by Martha Redbone which discusses how Forman, 鈥渙ften put his body on the line鈥� during the civil rights movement and got beaten and arrested in the effort to register people to vote.

I would describe the process of creating Action Songs/Protest Dances as a Sankofa practice. Sankofa is a symbol and term used by the Akan Tribe in Ghana, West Africa. The literal translation of the word is, 鈥�it is not taboo to fetch what is at risk of being left behind.鈥� In this work, we are going back in history to lift up the work of James Forman and bringing his words and advocacy forward through song and dance.

Did you discover any particular items within the archive that led to unexpected encounters or connections?

An unexpected connection was learning that Forman had worked with human rights activist Ella Baker. They both advocated for empowering the average person to become involved in the governance of their community. They did not believe in charismatic leadership, for if the charismatic leader is removed the work towards social improvement often ends with the leader. If people do not have a say in the laws, land, and resources in their community; they will be controlled by other people who don鈥檛 necessarily have their best interests at heart. 

Forman was trained as a journalist and wrote several non-fiction books including: High Tide of Black Resistance; Sammy Younge Jr.: The First Black College Student to Die in the Black Liberation Movement; The Making Of Black Revolutionaries, so it was a pleasant surprise to realize that Forman also did fictional writing and wrote short stories.

In addition to conceiving, directing, and choreographing Action Songs/Protest Dances you also commissioned five original songs for the production. What was the process of collaboration with the contributing composers?

The dancers, composers, and I reside in different cities, New Orleans, Albany, New York City, and we started working on Action Songs/Protest Dances during the pandemic, so being able to connect through zoom, and work online was essential. I worked with student interns Kathreena Bunch and Paolo Cecilia Silva in compiling a dossier about James Forman based on information in the library archives. It included his bio, links to his writings, and quotes by Forman. The dossier was shared with the creative team and it was a springboard for discussions. Several quotes became the lyrical inspiration for the songs.

The process of creating the songs was very collaborative. Each composer was paired with two dancers and we had several meetings where we discussed James Forman, actions that he was involved with, and current social justice issues that we want to draw attention to. What was important for the creative process is to identify what was resonating with the composers and dancers, and especially what the dancers were invested in embodying.

In 1969 Forman wrote 鈥淭he Black Manifesto鈥�, which is an expression of rebellion rooted in the despair of a people who had given up hope of 鈥渋ntegrating鈥� into the mainstream socioeconomic systems and structures in America. It demanded that Protestant and Jewish organizations pay $500 million in reparations for crimes perpetrated against generations of blacks during slavery. Over 40’s years later America still has not come to terms with the legacy of enslavement, and how to pay reparations.

Composer Taina Asili was paired with Brittany Stewart who is a 黑料专区 Dance Alumni. For the project, I am integrating three current QC Students, three QC Dance Alumni, and two professional Dancers with my company DELIRIOUS Dances. What resonated with Brittany is issues connected to financial literacy for the Black community as well as issues of wellness and Black Joy. Taina wrote 鈥凌别辫补谤补迟颈辞苍蝉鈥� a joyous song about the need, the demand for reparations.

Another issue that was identified was decriminalizing sex work. We met with members of Sex Workers Outreach Project who explained why they are advocating for decriminalization and not legalization; and with Carol Leigh (aka Scarlot Harlot ) who in 1978 coined the term 鈥渟ex worker鈥�. We are still working on decrim song, as we need more time to connect with people involved in the advocacy to decriminalize sex work, to clarify who we are writing the song for, is it a song that is a rallying cry for sex workers to be sung and danced at rallies; or is it a song and dance to educate people about why decrim needs to happen. 

Since the creative process for the songs was entirely virtual, I have not met composers Spirit McIntyre and Taina Asili in person. I鈥檓 incredibly excited for Thursday, November 10 which is when the composers, singers, musicians, and dancers are physically coming together for the first time!

This production is the result of your involvement in the inaugural Kupferberg Arts Incubator. As an artist residency initiative to support and advance the work of artists of color what was your experience producing Action Songs/Protest Dances within this context?

This question makes me think of how the US Supreme Court currently has several cases that are challenging the need for affirmative action. If education institutions remove affirmative action, then they also need to remove the practice of legacy. I also think of writer Toni Morrison who stated,

鈥淭he function, the very serious function of racism is distraction. It keeps you from doing your work. It keeps you explaining, over and over again, your reason for being. Somebody says you have no language and you spend twenty years proving that you do. Somebody says your head isn鈥檛 shaped properly so you have scientists working on the fact that it is. Somebody says you have no art, so you dredge that up. Somebody says you have no kingdoms, so you dredge that up. None of this is necessary. There will always be one more thing.鈥�

That being said, the experience of producing Action Songs/Protest Dances has been joyous. A give and take of listening, discussing, and dream-storming with an incredibly talented, smart, and generous gathering of artists. 

I started teaching at 黑料专区 in 2010, which is also when the Rosenthal Library acquired James Forman鈥檚 personal papers. I was incredibly excited as James Forman was the first person I heard criticize capitalism as an exploitative economic system. I remember feeling shocked, as I grew up playing monopoly and believing that capitalism was good and the 鈥淎merican Way鈥�.  Since 2010 I鈥檝e been wondering how I can lift up James Forman鈥檚 voice, work, advocacy and sacrifices during the Civil Rights movement in the 1960鈥檚. Then in 2020, the pandemic happened, followed by the murder of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. I began wondering how as a choreographer I can engage with the protests that were happening across the nation and help address injustices in America. The Kupferberg Center for the Arts Incubator provided the opportunity to create Action Songs/Protest Dances, which celebrate the life and words of James Forman; and through music and dance advocate for America to be a truly great nation.

Action Songs/Protest Dances premieres at the Saturday, November 12^th at 8pm and Sunday, November 13^th at 3pm. Tickets are $20. 黑料专区 students receive a 50% discount.

For more information on the performance visit the .

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An edit-a-thon is an event where participants come together to edit Wikipedia.  

This is for both complete newcomers and experienced Wikipedians. If you鈥檝e never edited an article before, don鈥檛 worry! This is a friendly and approachable way to begin. Instruction and assistance are provided; we will teach you how to make edits and how to make your edits stick.  

On the week of March 21, the library will host two edit-a-thons; please feel free to attend one or both! Each meeting will have a different theme, but of course, if you have begun to edit an article in the first event, you can always continue it in the second. 

The details are as follows: 

• QC Wiki-Week: Edit-a-thon Part I (The Civil Rights Movement in New York) 
  • Monday, March 21
  • 4:00-6:00 PM 

• QC Wiki-Week: Edit-a-thon Part II (Monuments, Landmarks, and Public Art in Queens) 
  • Wednesday, March 23 
  • 12:00-3:00 PM 

We hope to see you there! While we can鈥檛 offer free refreshments in this online format, we can offer support and good company as we edit and create articles. Anyone from inside or outside the 黑料专区 community is invited 鈥� faculty, students, staff, and others.   

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黑料专区 is known for its involvement in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, especially the Mississippi Freedom Summer in 1964. A year earlier, a lesser known, but no less important project took place, when 16 volunteers from the 黑料专区 Student Help Project traveled to Prince Edward County, Virginia to tutor Black children who were shut out of public schools due to massive resistance to desegregation. There, they lent support to a long struggle for equal education dating back to the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision in 1954 and local, student-led activism for better schools.

In this presentation, primary sources from the archives will bring to life this important history, as documented through a year-long oral history initiative made possible by the Freda S. and J. Chester Johnson Civil Rights & Social Justice Archives Fellowship Program at the 黑料专区 Library. Initiators/alumni of the Student Help Project will also join the event for the Q and A.

ANNIE TUMMINO is an assistant professor and head of Special Collections and Archives at the 黑料专区 Library, where she manages over 5,000 linear feet of college records, personal papers, and rare books. She is particularly interested in preserving the social movement history of 黑料专区 and connecting it to today鈥檚 activists and students. She received a master鈥檚 in library and information studies from 黑料专区 in 2010 and a master鈥檚 in maritime studies from SUNY Maritime College in 2020.

VICTORIA FERNANDEZ is the museum coordinator at the Harriet and Kenneth Kupferberg Holocaust Center at Queensborough Community College CUNY, where she helps develop and revise exhibition content, instruct student programming, manage library and archival collections, and facilitate interactions with their Holocaust survivor support group. She graduated from 黑料专区 in 2021 with a dual master鈥檚 degree in history and library science (MLS/MA) after receiving a BA in history and political science from the Macaulay Honors College at QC in 2018. She has held several positions within the field of archives, most recently serving as the 2020鈥� 2021 Freda S. and J. Chester Johnson Civil Rights and Social Justice Archives Fellow at the 黑料专区 Department of Special Collections and Archives.

Sponsored by the Office of Institutional Advancement

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