KT Lowe

KT Lowe

Celebrating Pride and African American Music Appreciation Month

Celebrating Pride and African American Music Appreciation Month

, , , Research
June celebrations are myriad and interesting, with lots of opportunities for discovery and learning.  This month, we celebrate both African American Music Appreciation Month and LGBTQ Pride Month.  African American LGBTQ musicians have contributed some of the most recognizable songs in American history, as well as serving as examples of successful artists who in many cases lived their truths openly.  Here, we profile a handful of artists spanning over 100 years of recorded music. Gertrude “Ma” Rainey Ma Rainey was born in 1886 with the full name of Gertrude Melissa Nix Pridgett, likely in Columbus, Georgia.  Her potent version of the blues was confrontational and influential, and she worked with some of the most famous artists of her (and any … Continued
An e-device for easy access to IU East databases

An e-device for easy access to IU East databases

, , Library Resources, Research
An e-device (phone, tablet, etc.) is all you need to access all the Campus Library databases available to IU East-affiliated users.  No matter where you go, all of our electronic resources are a few clicks away.  Learn how easy access can be! From the library website you can access all of our databases, as well as our book and video catalog, IUCAT, and LibGuides, which are our targeted guides for finding information.  Why go to the library website?  Many of our resources go through proxy servers, which ensures you don’t have to pay for the materials you access.  A single journal article can cost you as much as $40, but accessing through the library site, with your IU East credentials, … Continued
Writers, musicians, scientists: accomplishments of Black women throughout history

Writers, musicians, scientists: accomplishments of Black women throughout history

, , Library Resources, Research
In the arts, sciences, humanities and popular culture, Black women have helped to shape our society in ways large and small. You can research them in databases like African-American History Online, Black Women Writers, or Black Thought and Culture.  In this blog, we highlight three of these extraordinary women and their tremendous contributions to American society, history and culture. Sister Rosetta Tharpe The guitar stings its notes one after the next, amplified by gigantic speakers.  Up front, in a sleeveless cotton dress, a woman stands in front of a large silver microphone, her hair pulled up away from her face.  She is Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and according to a number of music historians, she invented or promoted many of the … Continued
Visual Artists and HIV

Visual Artists and HIV

, , , Research, Uncategorized
Since 1989, art galleries and museums have taken note of the toll that HIV has taken on artists and their communities.  While a number of HIV+ artists are well known, such as photographers Robert Mapplethorpe and Herb Ritts and painter Keith Haring, the disease still affects the art world today.  Profiled below are three artists whose work is making a significant impact in the art world today. Photographer John Dugdale produces fragile, beautiful cyanotypes and calotypes that often feature LGBTQ themes (even the flowers – really!).Born in 1960, Dugdale studied photography at New York’s School of the Visual Arts.  He was diagnosed with HIV in 1982 and lived with the disease mostly in check until 1993, when he suffered two … Continued
NewsLitCamp: Highlights 2021

NewsLitCamp: Highlights 2021

, , , , Programs
The NewsLitCamp, hosted by the News Literacy Project, is an outreach program dedicated to providing educators with the latest tools and information that they need to equip their students in the fight against fake news.  This year, 15 reporters and staff members from CNN joined in, offering exclusive insight into the back door of the nation’s top rated cable news network. A useful delineation of terms was presented by John Silva, who directs education initiatives at the News Literacy Project.  “Fake news,” once a distinct term referring to completely fabricated information formatted like a news story, has been overused to the point of uselessness.  It has also taken on the tone of a slur used in disagreements of points of … Continued