In April, I was invited to give a talk at Belmont University in Nashville, as part of National Library Week programs. Details on the talk are below:
“Social Movements and Libraries: From Tahrir Square to Occupy Wall Street”
2011 was a year of social movements, bringing change and upheaval all over the world, from the Middle East and North Africa to the United States. The Arab Spring, and particularly the Egyptian Revolution, are considered by some to have been successful as a result of protesters’ use of technology and social networking tools. There are many ways to support a social movement, and the efficient and effective sharing of information is one of them. Libraries, librarians, and other information professionals have been essential participants in both promoting and preserving these movements. The Occupy Wall Street protestors developed The People’s Library to support the movement. Librarians in Egypt continually work to save the artifacts of the revolution, from photographs to flyers to oral histories. This talk will discuss the different ways that the creating, sharing, and preserving information has played an important role in the recent social movements.
More information:
An article in the campus newspaper, The Belmont Vision