Reposting about Widerstand Consulting Resources Being in the Public Domain

I am posting again about Widerstand Consulting's anti-racism resources being available in the public domain.  We are doing this so that others can benefit from our work as we close the organization. All of these resources can be used by any organization or group as they work to become more anti-racist. These resources (12 in total) are available in the Internet Archive and in this Google Drive. You can download what interests you. Please tell your colleagues about this and encourage them to use our materials.

What do I mean that these can be used by anyone? We have placed a license on each of the documents which denotes that they are now part of the public domain. This enables you to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, with no conditions. We have done this so what we have learned will continue.

If you are unaware of what the Internet Archive is, it was begun in 1996 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit that is a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. The Internet Archive contains webpages, newspapers, audio, video, books, images, and software programs. Like a paper library, the Internet Archive provides free access to researchers, historians, scholars, people with print disabilities, and the general public. Today the Internet Archive contains more than 1 trillion items, which now includes materials from Widerstand.

I have been involved with Widerstand for several years and am disheartened to see that the focus on DEIA has decreased in the U.S. as priorities have shifted. This work does have its ebb and flows, and so I look forward to when organizations are again eager to eliminate systemic barriers in their structure. In my sadness as Widerstand closes, I am also overjoyed that our documents may help others continue this work. May these documents become part of the building blocks for the future.

Webinar: Still Standing: Fifty Years of the Copyright Act and the Path Ahead

 From the Copyright Clearance Center:

Date: 14 July 2026  
Time: 10:00 am EDT | 16:00 CEST 

Location: LinkedIn Live 

As it approaches its 50th Anniversary, how has the U.S. Copyright Act addressed an evolving world?

Join our panel of legal and copyright experts David Carson, Suzy Wilson, Pippa Loengard, and CCC's Catherine Zaller Rowland as they explore not only what the law says, but how it has adapted over the past half-century and how well equipped it is for the next wave of technological, legal, and market disruption.

This engaging session will feature: 

• How the U.S. Copyright Act has evolved since 1976 
• Areas where it is straining today under the impact of new technologies including AI 
• What the major challenges will be in the years ahead 

Register on LinkedIn! LinkedIn will tell you the time of the webinar in your time zone. This event is free.

 

Widerstand Anti-racism Resources are Now in the Public Domain

I have written a few times about my role with Widerstand Consulting, which is a non-profit [501(c)(3)] focused on helping organizations with addressing systemic barriers within their environments. Since its inception, Widerstand has worked with many organizations across the U.S. by providing training and anti-racism audits/assessments. However, over the past 18 months, shifting priorities and external pressures have led many organizations to step back from diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility (DEIA), and anti-racism work, making it difficult for Widerstand to continue its mission. Therefore, the organization has closed.

As part of our closing procedure, we decided to place 12 of our anti-racism resources - including a resource list - in the Internet Archive. All of these resources can be used by any organization as they work to become more anti-racist. I encourage you to use this link and review what we have put in the Internet Archive. You can download what interests you. Please tell your colleagues about this and encourage them to use our materials.

What do I mean that these can be used by anyone? We have placed a license on each of the documents which denotes that they are now part of the public domain. This enables you to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, with no conditions. We have done this so what we have learned will continue.

If you are unaware of what the Internet Archive is, it was begun in 1996 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit that is a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. The Internet Archive contains webpages, newspapers, audio, video, books, images, and software programs. Like a paper library, the Internet Archive provides free access to researchers, historians, scholars, people with print disabilities, and the general public. Today the Internet Archive contains more than 1 trillion items, which now includes materials from Widerstand.

I am sad that focus on DEIA has decreased in the U.S. as priorities have shifted. This work does have its ebb and flows, and so I look forward to when organizations are again eager to eliminate systemic barriers in their structure. In my sadness, I am also overjoyed that our documents may help others continue this work. May those documents become part of the building blocks for the future.

10 Fundable Accessibility Upgrades For Your Library

Yesterday I gave a lightning talk at the Central New York Library Resources Council (CLRC) Annual Conference, which was held at Hamilton College. This annual event is a chance for library staff from a four-county region to come together to learn and network. The event started with a keynote panel discussion focused on resiliency, which was followed by seven lightning talks divided between the morning and afternoon on a wide variety of topics, and a short annual business meeting.

My talk on "10 Fundable Accessibility Upgrades For Your Library" was inspired by the one-day New York State Library conference entitled, "Room For Everyone: A Library Accessibility Day of Learning." I published a post on that in August. Every library is interested in making its building more accessible and they often need funding to make those changes. I wanted to provide ideas on projects they could do to make their facilities and services more accessible, include a few that are free or low cost to implement.

Below are my slides. Please share them with others who are interested in accessibility. 

An Accessibility Bummer: I created and viewed the slides on my laptop before going to the conference and did not see them projected until I presented. So I was saddened that blue URL links did not show up well on the screen. As PowerPoint often does, it provided a color template that was not indeed fully accessible. While I couldn't test out my slides on a projector in advance, if possible it is always good to do that. It can be amazing to see how Microsoft's suggested color combinations do not work.

Thoughts from "Room For Everyone: A Library Accessibility Day of Learning"

On July 9, the New York State Library held a one-day conference to start a year-long celebration of the 35th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I had the pleasure of attending the event and facilitating a panel discussion on ""Building Services Where Everyone Belongs." The panelists were:

• Samir Benantar, NYS Education Department Language Access Coordinator 
• Blaise Bryant, the Communications Specialist for the NY Association on Independent Living 
• Anna DeRosa, Program Research Specialist & Grants Coordinator at the New York State Council on Developmental Disabilities
• Joan Naturale, National Technical Institute for the Deaf and Deaf Studies Archives liaison for students, staff, and faculty at the Rochester Institute of Technology
• Christopher Woodfill, Executive Director of the New York State Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing Office

 The State Library has written a summary of the day and I want to capture here some additional thoughts, some of which came after the event had ended:

• Work with local agencies which support people who have disabilities in order to understand how to modify the library appropriate. Consider creating a group of advisors who can review designs, color choices, etc., and provide input.
• Wayfinding is important for everyone including people with limited vision. For example, instead of painting every wall the same color, paint an easy to see wall in each room a different color. Then you can tell people to go to the room with the red wall, for example. I know this means having more paints on hand for touch up, but the benefit will be worth it.
• For someone who is blind or has low vision, consider how to build wayfinding into the flooring. Use texture on the floor to show pathways as well as places with paths cross (and a person might want to turn). 
• Upgrade your meeting rooms with hearing loops which can connect to a person's hearing aid through Bluetooth technology.
• Create a calming sensory room that can be used by children and adults with autism, as well as others who are being overwhelmed by the environment. 
• In my mind, libraries should consider more broadly how to use construction grants or funding from other sources to improve accessibility.
• Work with professional translation services to have library materials (e.g., policies, program information) translated into the languages that are spoken most in your area.  Be sure to have the translations reviewed by someone who speaks the language to ensure that translation makes sense to them. Also have these materials translated into Braille.
• Working with an interpreter (or an online interpreter service) can require some practice. Work to give your staff that practice time. Perhaps hire an interpreter to come, give a demonstration, and then allow people use the interpreter for a few minutes. (Pace, pausing, and clarity are important.)
• Create clear walking paths and do not use those clear walking paths for sudden displays or events. 
• Help staff become comfortable with making mistakes when working with someone who has accessibility needs. Helping a patron/community member can be more important than doing it perfectly. 
• Understand how to connect patrons with talking and Braille books.
• If your library has toys for children, ensure that toys are included for children who have accessibility needs.
• If you have recently renovation your library and did not think about accessibility (e.g., wayfinding), consider how you can now add-in accessibility elements.
• Remember to think about color selection for those who are color blind. Use high contract color combinations. 
• Work to ensure that your library website is accessible and can be read by screen readers.

There is much more to consider. While it can be overwhelming, every change - even small ones - can help your library be more welcoming to its community. 

The State Library is hosting a series of webinars to continue this conversation and education. The summary blog post contains a list of currently scheduled webinars at the bottom.