As we approach the end of spring semester, keep in mind the NHTI Learning Commons Library – your place to study, discuss topics with friends, and seek help from library staff. Schedule a half-hour research consultation to help with your final! Email us at [email protected] or call us: 603-230-4028.
Sexual Assault Awareness Month
April is devoted to raising awareness about sexual violence, how to prevent it, and how to support those affected by it. This year’s theme is Building Safe Online Spaces Together. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center: “Sexual harassment, assault, and abuse can happen anywhere, including in online spaces. For too long harassment, cyberbullying, and sexual abuse and exploitation have come to be expected as typical and unavoidable behaviors online. Building Safe Online Spaces Together is possible when we practice digital consent, intervene when we see harmful content and behaviors, and promote online communities that value respect, inclusion, and safety.”
Explore our Anti-Violence Toolkit for information on domestic violence, bystander apathy, and gender identity and sexual orientation. You can also reach out to New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence, New Hampshire’s 24-hour statewide helpline, at 1-866-644-3574.
National Poetry Month and Other Library Events
While Russia’s war against Ukraine has raged, many Ukrainian artists have continued their work, a sign of defiant hope in the face of violence. This National Poetry Month, read Words of War: New Poems from Ukraine.
And for more on poetry, join us on April 14 from 4-5:30 p.m. for our next Wings of Knowledge presentation: “Bearing Witness — The Endurance of Voice.” For more information, visit here. Shanta Lee Gander joins us to celebrate the life of Lucy Terry Prince, author of “Bars Fight,” the oldest known poem in the U.S. written by an African American in 1796. Prince was born in Africa, where she was kidnapped by slave traders and transported to Rhode Island. Prince later regained her freedom and moved to Vermont with her husband. She fought for her family’s land rights all the way to the highest court in Vermont. In this presentation, Shanta Lee Gander, a poet herself, illustrates Prince’s importance as a poet, orator, and one unafraid to fight for her rights. Gander will also perform Lucy’s only surviving poem, “Bars Fight.”
And be sure to look out for our Wings of Knowledge blogs, published soon after the events. Check out our two recent blogs: Roots and Culture of the Middle East and The Abolitionists of Noyes Academy.
Also in April, don’t miss an evening of poetry with Hannah Larrabee, UNH grad and poet selected by NASA to write poetry for the James Webb Space Telescope program. Participate in a contest for space/science/nature writing by attending the writing workshop. Cash prizes of up to $100 will be awarded. Email [email protected] for details. Larrabee won the Airlie Press Poetry Prize and was shortlisted for a Massachusetts Book Award. For an excerpt of her poem “Extraterrestrial,” visit here.
Earth Day, April 22
This year’s theme is Invest In Our Planet. Read about the origins of Earth Day, first celebrated in 1970, here. Fun N.H. fact: Senator Thomas McIntyre, who delivered 14 speeches in his home state of New Hampshire, set the record for the greatest number of speeches given by one person on that first Earth Day. (Lewis TT. Earth Day. Salem Press Encyclopedia. 2020. Accessed March 18, 2022. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=shib&db=ers&AN=89474106&site=eds-live)
Social Media
Have you checked out the Learning Commons Library on Facebook and Instagram? Find updates on scheduling changes and all sorts of timely and interesting items. We devote days of the week to particular themes:
- On Media Mondays, LCL coordinator Christie Cho highlights a media item or collection from the library’s extensive digital collections.
- On Throwback Thursdays, archivist Megan Mullins tests your knowledge of NHTI history.
- On Fantastic Friday, circulation supervisor Tim Fisher posts his newest sci-fi picks.
Foolish Findings
Why is April 1 also known as April Fools’ Day? It’s a bit of a mystery, as this poem describes, published in 1760 in Poor Robin’s Almanac:
The first of April, some do say,
Is set apart for All Fools’ Day.
But why the people call it so,
Nor I, nor they themselves do know.
But on this day are people sent
On purpose for pure merriment.
(“April Fools’ Day.” Salem Press Encyclopedia, 2020. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=shib&db=ers&AN=89403385&site=eds-live&custid=concordt)
