Bethlehem Library Notes for Thursday, January 24, 2019
Racism can be obvious when it comes in the form of big, glaring declarations of hate, but it can be subtle and pervasive, too, with the roots of many of these issues going back to the birth and growth of the United States, according to local civil rights attorney Stephan Haimowitz.
In “Racism and the Law: Confronting the Realities,” a two-part series beginning Wednesday, Jan. 30, and concluding the following Wednesday, Feb. 6, Haimowitz will delve into the range of racial controversies affecting this country — from mass incarceration, to voting rights, affirmative action and beyond.
He will review how United States law embedded racism in the country’s birth and growth, then moved incrementally to ban discrimination. He will also examine many of today’s disputes in terms of three divergent legal concepts: color blindness, diversity, and reparations.
Haimowitz presents a timely discussion in light of a Siena Research Institute poll released just this month that found the majority of New Yorkers do not hold a positive view of the current state of race relations, a rapid decline from just six years ago.
The program begins at 7 p.m. both nights. A list of suggested reading and films to accompany the discussion can be found in the library and online at www.bethlehempubliclibrary.org/racism-and-the-law-confronting-the-realities.
An introduction to video editing
The library has scheduled a number of Adobe Premiere Elements training sessions as we gear up for the opening of our brand-new audio/visual studio. Learn how to use the software to edit videos, create titles, insert transitions, add special effects, adjust audio, and more to create a professional-looking video suitable for a variety of media.
Two-hour training sessions take place Thursday, Jan. 31, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.; Tuesday, Feb. 5, from 11 a.m to 1 p.m.; Monday, Feb. 11, from 10 a.m. to noon.; or Thursday, Feb. 28, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Please sign up for only one session. Register online at www.bethlehempubliclibrary.org (click on the “Calendar” tab) or call 518-439-9314.
Tops in 2018
We’ve tallied up the items most frequently checked out from Bethlehem Public Library over the past year, and the results are in. The No. 1 circulating item in 2018 was a library laptop computer, followed by the portable WiFi hotspot, two items from our growing Library of Things.
Coming in at No. 3 is People magazine, followed by the most checked out DVD — “The Shape of Water.” Our most popular museum pass of 2018 was for the Museum of Innovation and Science (miSci), and the most frequently checked out book was “The Woman in the Window” by A.J. Finn, followed closely by Kristin Hannah’s “The Great Alone.”
We can’t wait to see what’s tops in 2019!