Home July 2002 Vol 63 No 4 Speed book review

College and Research Libraries
July 2002, Vol. 63, No. 4

Book Review

The Power of Language/El poder de la palabra: Selected Papers from the Second REFORMA National Conference, ed. Lillian Castillo-Speed and the REFORMA National Conference Publications Committee. Englewood, Colo.: Libraries Unlimited, 2001. 225p. $35 (ISBN 1563089459). LC 2001-38430.

REFORMA, the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and the Spanish Speaking, was established in 1971 and is committed to the development and improvement of service to the 31 million Spanish speaking and Latino people in the United States. The proceedings of REFORMA’s Second National Conference, held in August 2000, is genuine advocacy scholarship that informs in the context of equity and fairness. It consists of five parts: “The Power of Language,” “Latino Leadership,” “Issues in Latino Library Service,” “Latino Programs and Models of Service,” and “Documenting Latino Lives and Creativity,” plus an introduction and the conference’s concluding speech. Each part consists of several chapters.

The foundation essay by Spanish linguistics scholar Sonia Ramírez Wohlmuth, “Language and Identity in Contemporary Latin American Thought,” constructs a cogent rationale for all U. S. librarians to confront issues of race and language. It is especially pertinent to academic librarians who must address Wohlmuth’s challenge to collect literature in Spanish: “Literary production represents the culmination of a linguistic tradition, a vehicle to showcase the language.” The recruitment of librarians who will be receptive to Wohlmuth’s challenge was addressed by a panel of librarian educators from accredited LIS programs: the University of Texas at Austin (Loriene Roy), UCLA (Clara Chu), the University of Arizona (Carla Stoffle), the University of South Florida (Elaine Yontz), and the ALA’s director of the Office for Accreditation (Ann O’Neill). Although their observations were focused on serving Latinos, the discussion provides useful insights into diversity in general as it relates to library service and collection development. The reality of their observations is reemphasized in Denice Adkins’s chapter on the effect of the “Hispanic Demographic” on the relationship between the Hispanic population and the provision of library services.

Isabel Espinal wrote of applying “Whiteness Theory” to librarianship and introduced a new conceptual framework using anthropological and cultural studies models. Her proposal to conduct an ethnographic study of White cultural practices in academic libraries is a provocative upending of the standard discourse on diversity. Bruce Jensen’s “The Cárcel and the Biblioteca” is a call to arms for those who recognize the value of anthropological librarianship.

In “Queer Community History and the Evidence of Desire,” Luis Alberto de la Garza and Horacio N. Roque Ramírez present the history of the Archivo Rodrigo Reyes, documenting the gay and lesbian Latino community in the San Francisco Bay Area. With compelling photos from the Archivo and a poetic narrative, the making and use of public history is explored in a way that illuminates archival work. Tatiana De la Tierra provided an overview of Latina Lesbian Literary Herstory, “From Sor Juana to Days of Awe,” including a selected list of contemporary gay and lesbian titles.

The Power of Language/El poder de la palabra is a significant contribution to Latino librarianship. It provides scholarly and emotional background for the expansion of library services across the borders of nations and types of libraries. Though several essays focus on public libraries or youth services, this volume is highly recommended for all academic collections. Not only does it offer a context for library service to a growing community, but it also provides rich bibliographic and philosophical resources for cultural studies, correctional studies, queer studies, and career development. This volume reflects the theme of REFORMA President Oralia Garza de Cortés, “The Power of Language: To Learn, To Imagine, To Act,” and her call for library service built on democracy, not bureaucracy.—Kathleen de la Peña McCook, University of South Florida.