A $1,000 grant from Indiana Humanities will allow Crawfordsville District Public Library to expand its collection of resources on racial equality.
CDPL was among 150 Indiana libraries in 60 counties that received funds from the Indianapolis-based nonprofit organization to purchase books and DVDs that are in high demand following recent racial justice protests.
“The reference staff had noticed there was increasing interest in books or resources on … urban fiction or on this kind of topic,” said Theresa Tyner, director of library services.
The Advancing Racial Equity Collection Development Grant program was created in response to the May 25 death of George Floyd and its aftermath, as library patrons requested materials on race-related issues.
Schools, prisons and community centers with libraries were also awarded funds. The project was funded by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.
Libraries received a list of nearly 200 titles selected by librarians who consulted with humanities scholars to highlight works addressing systematic racism, inequitable policing and protest.
The list was compiled using resource guides from the Central Indiana Community Foundation and Booklist, a review publication for librarians and booksellers.
Some of the titles were already on CDPL’s shelves, such as Brit Bennett’s recent novel “The Vanishing Half” about the lives of twin sisters who run away from a Southern Black community as teenagers.
Robin DiAngelo’s 2018 book “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism” and “Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption,” a 2014 memoir by Equal Justice Initiative founder Bryan Stevenson, are also frequently checked out.
With the funding, CDPL is purchasing other frequently-requested books, including the James McBride novel “Deacon King Kong” about the lives of people affected by a shooting at a housing project in 1960s New York City.
“We’re excited to have received the grant. We’re very pleased and hope it will help to round out our collection,” Tyner said.
Indiana Humanities’ list also included books for children and teens.
Grants were also awarded to libraries in Attica, Putnam County and the Rockville Correctional Facility.
