Library
This page showcases the space that the Humboldt State library has given to activism. The main focus of this page is to show, with an intersectional lens, by this I mean to show "the connecting and co-producing ways ways in which a difference-turned-inequality is enacted, either conceptually(in terms of prejudice and stereotyping) or behaviorally(in terms of discrimination)" as defined in Queer Brown Voices, the environment that the library has created for people that identify as queer and for queerness in general. With this page I hope to showcase the way the library has tried to be a safe space for student resistance. While researching I came across a student protest that was talked about in three different points of view; the students that ran it, the media reporting it, and the staff from the library where the protest occupied. This was a story that had to be told; no matter the point of view, it still focuses on students taking power into their hands against what they felt was wrong.
This page is in no way a comprehensive work on everything the library has done for queerness. It is a small piece of a larger story. I am excited to see what future students and researchers will do with this page, whether that be adding more events and information because as Barbara Smith has said, "there will always be people who decide that they must act, they must communicate, they must take a stand for justice", or using the story that I came across and was captivated by while researching.
Curated by Jade M.
The “Pissed Off Student Collective of HSU” stated that they want to take action against a number of things including, but not limited to: “racism, classism, sexism, and the oppression of LGBTQI”. The statement expresses an intersectional lens, fighting against the harsh oppressions that affect students, and all people, on a daily basis. They pay homage to, who they call, the “heroic rebels” (Greece, Oaxaca, Chiapas) that inspired their protest. By doing this they are acknowledging that their struggles are not just on this specific campus but that they occur globally, and that these oppressions are systemic.
The newspaper focused on the economic aspect of the study in, ignoring the outrage that the group felt towards the mistreatment of all aspects of a person’s identity, including queerness. It also ignored the collaboration and coalition between the library and the activist group. By framing the group as solely focusing on where funds were being allocated the newspaper reduced the Collective’s goal from interlocking oppressions that occur globally, to a campus specific money issue.
Librarian Wayne Perryman talked about the protest that took place as an act of civil disobedience against the injustices that the students, the “Pissed Off Student Collective of HSU”, felt were being done. He comments on the fact that the students were respectful and helpful. They cleaned up after themselves and engaged in insightful conversations about their grievances. He goes on to talk about the library and the students building a coalition of sorts in order to work together and keep everyone involved safe and happy. The library acted as a safe and cooperative space for the students to hold their sit in. In the emails Perryman states that the University Police Department would not be in charge of the security, and that the officials wanted to try and keep the protest as “low key” and “non-confrontational” as possible.
Wayne Perryman, Humboldt State librarian, was there during the student protest, and he agreed to an interview, seven years later, to talk about his thoughts regarding the Study-In. He talks about the coalition that was built between the protestors and the library staff, which as Elizabeth Martinez states in "Unite and Rebel!", is "necessary and even vital" to a cause, especially to ensure the safety of everyone in attendance.
The way that the coalition was able to even work was because, as Perryman states, the staff never tried to co-opt the movement that was happening, but only wished to facilitate safety and answer questions when called upon. We can hear in the interview that the students executed a major shift in the balance of power with their protest; by demanding to be heard by the University and those in power that they felt were the cause, and by speaking out and hosting different workshops during the Study-In, they were able to educate and show those in attendance what their lived experience was like.