tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214531909685193256.post1840697985914214346..comments2023-06-01T05:52:44.931-04:00Comments on CBC Diversity: NYPL Diversity Panel RecapCBC Diversity Committeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02210096489191130439noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214531909685193256.post-40614606442904042962013-03-10T17:15:37.915-04:002013-03-10T17:15:37.915-04:00Great story, I really admire how you want to show ...Great story, I really admire how you want to show the diversity in class and geography. In many things diversity is only focused on race and ethnicity. Bibiana286https://www.blogger.com/profile/12625114556404131204noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214531909685193256.post-70643366429096478252013-03-09T02:57:13.842-05:002013-03-09T02:57:13.842-05:00Class is very much a complicating factor in even e...Class is very much a complicating factor in even entertaining the idea to enter publishing, definitely. When you grow up in poverty, though, a job that has the potential to pay 30 or 40 or 50k a year is actually pretty appealing (more is even better, but even that much is more money than I could have even dreamed of as a kid). It's the difference between poor and middle class, which for me was a huge difference. Being able to afford to go to the dentist before there's a huge gaping hole in your tooth. Being able to go to the doctor whenever you needed to, to not have to make your medicine stretch. These were things I didn't actually know growing up. And the only reason I didn't go hungry on a regular basis (most of the time, at least) was because we lived on a farm and grew our own food. <br /><br />For me, even knowing that getting a job in publishing was a possibility was the missing link, and then figuring out how to make the money work was harder than I'd expected when the reality came down to it, because even though I was making more as a publishing assistant than I ever made as a helper on a dairy farm or as a dishwasher/baker in a Swedish bakery, it's still not that much to get by on in a city (even one that isn't NYC). The only way I did it was by avoiding New York for nearly 10 years of my career--and there aren't that many children's book jobs outside New York! <br /><br />I think anyone who isn't independently wealthy is going to have a struggle in publishing financially, especially at first. We definitely aren't in this job for the money (though I do like to pay my bills and am really grateful to be able to afford my own apartment nowadays...). That, I think, will always make recruiting among the poor to lower middle class a problem, even when there is great access to books and love of the English language. There are certainly easier, lower-stress ways of making a living. (And just as many high-stress, low-pay ways to do so, too. :) ) It's a huge challenge.Stacy Whitmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10368249394199905486noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214531909685193256.post-86087890136152949772013-03-08T14:16:52.350-05:002013-03-08T14:16:52.350-05:00Oh I wish I had know about this event earlier (if ...Oh I wish I had know about this event earlier (if it was open to the public)!<br /><br />I would love to see more published multi-cultural books for kids and it'd be great if more publishers can accept these kinds of novels as "mainstream" instead of a "niche"Hong Tranhttp://www.hong-tran.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214531909685193256.post-10857405729351587512013-03-08T11:55:38.966-05:002013-03-08T11:55:38.966-05:00Connie, great summary, thank you for the personal ...Connie, great summary, thank you for the personal aspect, and I'm so glad the panel went well and you didn't find yourself in the hot seat. Very interesting to consider how we define equity and marginalization as well as diversity. Progress!Wendy Lambhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08227104538211607460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6214531909685193256.post-3320622541779381482013-03-06T13:54:07.578-05:002013-03-06T13:54:07.578-05:00Thanks for the recap - this is an important topic,...Thanks for the recap - this is an important topic, and I'm intrigued indeed that this is more easily spilling out of the individual blog posts and ruminations and into the face-to-face world - because I think the action we're all waiting for is happening now.tanita✿davishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01671822274852087499noreply@blogger.com