Wisconsin Man Banned From Libraries On Earth
Tacito Fingerut
An employee who was a witness told investigators that he was on the second floor, "standing in the open, not trying to conceal the act". Police were called to the scene and when an officer approached him, he was sat at a table reading a book. According to court records seen by Racine Journal Times, Carter initially denied that he knew why the police had been called. When the officer explained the situation, Carter allegedly apologised and said it was his first time doing it in public.
Carter, who had been staying at the Homeless Assistance Leadership Organization of Racine, was taken to Racine County Jail - and his bond was set at $1,000. His order to "stay away from all libraries on the face of the earth" was reportedly a condition of his bond.
And that's why you don't masturbate in libraries, folks. A 20-year-old Wisconsin man has been banned from "all the libraries on the face of the earth" as a condition of his $1,000 bond, after being accused of openly masturbating in the Racine Public Library last week. Tyree S. Carter has been charged with misdemeanor counts of lewd behavior and disorderly conduct. Investigators were told Carter was not trying to conceal his act, and was committing the act out in the open--but for what it's worth, he did apologize to responding police officers.
Banned Books Week began in 1982, in response to a surge of book bans and challenges. It was specifically started by Judith Krug, a librarian and strong proponent of freedom of speech. Since then, the American Library Association has tracked the number of books that have been banned or challenged across the United States. The pressing nature and need of this week has not diminished but only increased since then.
As attached as I became to the Wisconsin Water Library over the past spring semester, I set aside my responsibilities there for the summer to head to Washington, D.C., where I have been remarkably privileged to intern in the library of the Executive Office of the President of the United States.
The Library and Research Services Division falls under the Office of Administration within the EOP, and its mission is to support EOP staff, including those in the White House, in their work for the president. It includes a main library, holding books on presidential and political history as well as other issues in the social sciences; a law library, containing government documents and legal resources; and an array of digital resources, including bibliographic and legal databases and news outlet subscriptions.
The physical library spaces themselves, ornate and multi leveled with interior balconies, have been beautiful work environments, and some vestiges of their 19th-century origins have made routine tasks particularly fun, such as a pulley-operated dumbwaiter to move books between the open tiers of one of the libraries.
The staff of the EOP library, including me, was lucky to attend the presentation of the 2023 National Medal for Museum and Library Service, hosted by Jill Biden in the East Room of the White House. Representatives from eight winning libraries and museums of various types around the country attended, and the ceremony was followed by a reception in the East Wing.
The Birchbark House / by Louise Erdrich. New York, New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 1999. Ages 8-12+
The first of a five-part series that follows a young Ojibwe girl named Omakayas throughout an eventful year on Mooningwanekaaning, now known as Madeline Island. Explore Discussion Questions and Learning Activities for this book here.
Gimaamaa-akiiminaan gimiigwechiwendaamin (Thankful for our Mother Earth: Spearing through the ice, activity booklet) / by Dylan Jennings and Wesley Ballinger. Odanah, WI: Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission, 2016.
Ghost Ships, Gales and Forgotten Tales: True Adventures of the Great Lakes by Wes Oleszewski
Graveyard of the Lakes by Mark L. Thompson
Great Lakes Shipwrecks & Survivals by William Ratigan
Shipwrecks and Lost Treasures, Great Lakes: Legends and Lore, Pirates and More! By Michael Varhola
Steamboats & Sailors of the Great Lakes by Mark L. Thompson
Stories from the Wreckage: a Great Lakes Maritime History Inspired by Shipwrecks by John Odin Jensen
Wreck of the Carl D. : a True Story of Loss, Survival, and Rescue at Sea by Michael Schumacher
Wisconsin Sea Grant YouTube channel: =PLhHCCseyxU38Z_1jZpIhLp5nUGodX0agW
Watch ROV footage and listen to a maritime archaeologist talk about working with remotely operated vehicles in shipwreck research
DK Eyewitness Books: Titanic: Learn the Full Story of This Tragic Ship from its Famous Passengers to the Exploration of its Remains by Simon Adams
882 1/2 Amazing Answers to Your Questions about the Titanic Paperback by Hugh Brewster
If You Were a Kid aboard the Titanic by Josh Gregory; illustrated by Sebastian Serra
Inside the Titanic by Hugh Brewster
Tonight on the Titanic (Magic Tree House, No. 17) by Mary Pope Osborne
I am Megan Nayar and I am the student education assistant for Wisconsin Sea Grant. Since winter is not giving up its grip this year, I found some reading suggestions to sustain you until the thaw comes and spring arrives. I have suggested readings for children and adults that explore life under the water and that amply the voices of Water Protectors, leaders that advocate for the sustainable conservation of our water resources. The books listed below can be read and discussed with friends and family!
Gimaamaa-Akiiminaan Gimiigwechiwendaamin: Thankful for Our Mother Earth: Spearing through the Ice Activity Booklet by Dylan Jennings. Odanah, Wisconsin.: Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission, [2016].
Consider the patterns in both poetry and science. Or consider how each discipline uses observations to make sense of the world. Certainly, both use their own techniques and require creativity and even problem-solving. Perhaps the two disciplines are not so very different?
As the spring thaw begins in Wisconsin, the outdoors and our watery places beckon. For both kids and adults there is a strong urge to get outside and play. This urge also inspires narratives from writers on their own experiences exploring our world: on foot, in canoes, on bicycles, in their backyards, from their tents and sometimes from conversations with strangers they meet along the way.
Crossing the Driftless: A Canoe Trip through a Midwestern Landscape.
By Lynne Smith Diebel and illustrated by Robert Diebel. Madison, WI: Terrace Books, an imprint of the University of Wisconsin Press, 2015.
Books have the power to inspire and enlighten. Diversity in books, especially in literature published for youth, is essential. All children must see themselves in the pages of the books they read, especially as we inspire and motivate the next generation of Great Lakes and water leaders. The library continues to develop our collection to reflect the diverse members and experiences in our community of readers.
The Wisconsin Water Library is taking deliberate steps to expand its holdings of materials related to traditional knowledge and water. We acknowledge our collection is incomplete so please email Anne Moser with your suggestions (akm...@aqua.wisc.edu).
In the United States, structural racism is inextricably linked to environmental racism. A disproportionate burden of environmental harm falls on BIPOC (black, Indigenous, and people of color) communities and on working class neighborhoods.1 Harmful infrastructure such as landfills, poor drinking water systems and lack of safe play spaces and harmful practices including a lack of investment in communities, leads to poorer physical and mental health. As our society continues to grapple with the very real effects of climate change, these negative consequences will continue to displace marginalized communities at an even more severe level.
There is no environmental justice without full social justice, and there is no full social justice without environmental justice. Our core values as librarians surround access to information, and how various societal issues prevent that from happening. We have a duty to dismantle these systemic barriers, meaning that every societal issue is a library issue as well, and something we should be addressing. There is much work to do in terms of advancing social justice and anti-racist initiatives for the black members of our community, and to affirm that black lives DO matter. Further, these conversations belong at the center of any conversation surrounding environmental justice.
We have created this reading list as a means of providing information and facilitating critical thinking surrounding these topics. This list is meant to be an introduction, and is by no means exhaustive. If you have resources or readings to add regarding environmental justice and social justice, please send an email to Anne Moser akm...@aqua.wisc.edu.
During this time of social distancing, I am sad to be writing at home to say goodbye to a friend and collaborator I have had the honor of working with over the past several years. For a long time, as an outreach librarian, I wanted to teach kiddos about underwater exploration but had no idea how to approach it. I sought help from Maritime Archaeology program at the Wisconsin Historical Society and they paired me with an intern, Tori Kiefer. Tori and I have worked closely over the years to expand what Wisconsin Sea Grant and the library can offer in shipwreck education. She brought her expertise to me and we worked together to produce an informal education program that kids and adults have loved. I shall forever remember how cool the Silver Lake is, the only double centerboard scow schooner shipwreck found in the Great Lakes. I will probably never don a wet suit and dive for shipwrecks, I owe my passion for teaching the subject to my friend.
Like so many institutions around the world, the Wisconsin Water Library has temporarily closed its doors today, March 16, 2020 until the UW Madison opens again (after spring break and the alternative instruction period), tentatively scheduled for April 10. Though the physical space is closed, library staff are here in the virtual space to help with your library or research needs.
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