Pride Month: LGBTQ+ Resources Available at Library
As we progress through this Pride Month, I have been asking myself: How do we move beyond performative allyship and work toward meaningful advocacy? Truthfully, I have been asking myself this same question for every other month dedicated to marginalized and/or disenfranchised populations—for me, it has not always been an easy one to answer. While I do not identify as a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, I do consider myself a staunch supporter of sexual and gender minorities. But what really qualifies my self-identification as an ally; have I done enough? To that end, is there ever a point at which anyone can say they have done enough?
If you have found yourself wondering about these—or similar—questions, I offer you my camaraderie! Although these queries seem impossible to answer, they offer never-ending paths for exploration. And perhaps it is in that exploration of these difficult topics that we might discover how best we can contribute to social causes. Thankfully, as members of NHTI’s learning community, we have our free-to-use Learning Commons Library to provide us with a wealth of high-quality resources to foster deep and critical thinking.
This access to information puts us in a position of privilege. Our ability utilize millions of authoritative information sources affords us an opportunity to become life-long learners who recognize that there is always more to learn and different perspectives to consider. Given the wealth of information at our fingertips, I urge us to make a conscientious effort to reflect meaningfully on sexual orientation and gender expression and explore difficult questions together this Pride Month, as well as during the 11 other months of our calendar year!
Some questions we might ask ourselves:
- What intersectionalities exist within the LGBTQIA+ community?
- Who are responsible for launching the LGBTQIA+ rights movement?
- What role did people of color play in the LGBTQIA+ movement, how were they treated by their LGBTQIA+ peers?
- Through whose voices have we heard the history of the LGBTQIA+ movement?
Check out the Learning Commons Library’s LGBTQIA+ and Allyship Toolkit:
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This blog post was contributed by Christie Cho, MMus, MLIS, Learning Commons Library coordinator. Email ccho@ccsnh.edu for additional information.
