Children’s literature web publisher Debbie Reese to deliver Simon Ortiz & Labriola Center Lecture on Indigenous Land, Culture & Community

The Simon Ortiz and Labriola Center Lecture on Indigenous Land, Culture, and Community at Arizona State University addresses topics and issues across disciplines in the arts, humanities, sciences and politics. Underscoring indigenous American experiences and perspectives, this series seeks to create and celebrate knowledge that evolves from an indigenous worldview that is inclusive and that is applicable to all walks of life.

This fall’s speaker is Debbie Reese (Nambé Pueblo), publisher of the website American Indians in Children’s Literature (AICL). Her topic: “Some Truths, but Lots of Lies: Indigenous Peoples in Children’s Literature.” The following information was provided by ASU from the lecture website:

“Reese started the AICL blog in 2006—with the teachings of her elders and Native scholars in mind—when she was a professor in the American Indian Studies program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. ‘Those teachings,’ she explains, ‘are ones that tell us that the work we do is not for ourselves but for our communities and their well-being.’ For her, that meant making her research and writing easily and readily accessible to those who typically have the least access to the work of academics….”

More information: https://english.clas.asu.edu/indigenous/

A reception for Debbie Reese will be 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 20, at the Labriola National American Indian Data Center, located on the second floor of Hayden Library on the Arizona State University Tempe campus. The public is invited. Refreshments will be served.