Sitting Bull College Library Director Mark Holman will speak at UMD's Kathryn A. Martin Library at 7 p.m. on Thursday, February 8, in its 4th floor Rotunda reading room.
For Holman, the recent Dakota Access Pipeline protests presented opportunities and challenges in serving the unique community of thousands that came to Standing Rock. The college library had a role to play as both a tribal college and community library for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Standing Rock Reservation region in North and South Dakota.
Throughout the protests, the library sought to serve visitors, engage with camp organizations, and preserve a record of an important moment in history.
“Libraries are one of the few places in our society that offer free services while being open to everyone. As a result, we find ourselves on the leading edge of fault lines and conflicts within our communities in an age of division," Holman said.
How does a library handle serving its community while being located near the front lines of a conflict that still reverberates today? Holman will describe his experiences and engage the audience in a dialogue about the role of the library and librarian during times of upheaval or significant change.
For more information about this event, contact Jodi Carlson Grebinoski at 218-726-7880 or [email protected].