Notes from NHIL Meet and Greet Discussion - 2/3/17

He aha ia mea he Hawaiian Librarianship?

• The meshing of Hawaiian and Western ways
• Need the space to talk to each other and support from one another because we go up against many barriers in the institutions we work at
• Working with everyday people, Hawaiian communities. We struggled with what is Hawaiian librarianship. Hawaiian librarianship is working with Hawaiian community. The need in our professional work to translate our LIS skills into more cultural approaches. Come into a very western space with western programs. Need to create a more Hawaiian space
• Walk into spaces and not see Hawaii - need more definitive Hawaii spaces
• Change the perspectives of how we look at and care for Hawaiian Collections. We are looking into our ike and not theirs
• Become the HLA of Hawaii with the tread of Hawaiian running throughout with special committees for various aspects of librarianship, like academic, school, special, public
• Have more opportunities for integration of Hawaiian things in all things, like schools. Shared DOE example

What kind of support and professional development do we need for ourselves as LIS professionals and future professionals?

• No Child Left Behind Act severed the kupuna keiki interaction (kupuna class) in schools. Find support for libraries to provide that kind of support
• Empower Hawaiians with cultural knowledge who many not have that knowledge base. Helping to ease that feeling that you are not Hawaiian enough. The idea of Hawaiian enough
• Push back on authentication and authorization of ike Hawaii
• Provide spaces to talk about various areas of interest like instruction like a roundtable
• When you don’t know the answer, go find that person who knows. A collaborative community base you can use to find that person who knows.
• We have this ike, genealogically passed down to us.
• Organizations implement ethical guidelines to care for materials
• Work in systems of oppression
• Having roundtables as a possible model to talk through these issues and concepts
• Reconcile when the knowledge is not ready to be revealed when the questions are there
• ATALM-- things that we learn in Library School are to be thought about and challenged
• Just ignore it and do our thing. Try not to fit that western perspective of LIS and just do our own thing

What are way library services can be improved in Hawaiian communities?

• a lot of school librarian positions are cut
• plant something when a librarian is not in schools
• Platform for advocacy
• Library perceived as a place where smart people are and not approachable. Look at the community as a library and help the community feel more comfortable to go to the library. Value the community and flip it. Make it relatable