For Immediate Release
Monday, January 11, 2021
CONTACT:
Molly Higgins
Co-Chair, Media and Publicity Committee
Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association
communications@apalaweb.org
The Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) joins the Black Caucus of the American Library Association (BCALA), the New Jersey Librarians Association (NJLA), and the American Library Association’s Executive Board (ALA) in emphatically condemning the violence that marked January 6, 2021 on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. The stark differences in treatment between Black and Brown peaceful protestors this past summer and yesterday’s rioting mob blatantly displayed the unequal, racist standards many individuals from minoritized communities endure.
We offer support to our members and colleagues who live and work in the Washington, D.C. area and other cities battling white-supremacist fueled violence. Their continued safety and well-being are foremost in our minds.
For generations, and particularly in the past four years, communities of color have been the targets of racism, misogyny, homophobia, and xenophobia. Along with our professional colleagues in the national associations for librarians of color, APALA continues to advocate for and emphasizes the importance of equity, diversity, and inclusion in library workspaces, organizations, and services, for it is only in working together that we can create a more just world.
Founded in 1980, the Asian/Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All donations to APALA are tax deductible and support our work for library services, programs, scholarships, awards, and grants related to library services benefiting Asian/Pacific Americans and Asian/Pacific American librarians.