We are on the starting blocks and a little excited…
…because, CID is pregnant! In a few months, we hope for the happy birth of our new feminist children’s and youth library. The name is yet to be revealed.
Why new?
Since its foundation in 1992, one of the CID’s central aims has been to reach children, young people, and their parents, as well as all those working in education, through our library in order to promote gender-sensitive, stereotype-free education. Colette Kutten, the co-founder of the CID, wrote retrospectively in 2012: “The board was (and still is) convinced that a change in mentality could best be achieved through a change in educational content and methods.” (Kutten 2012: 132).[1] For this reason, the library, which was established soon after the foundation, contained pedagogical theory and, since 1995, the section “girl-friendly books for children and young people”. The latter were intended to break down traditional roles and offer girls and boys the opportunity to identify with heroes and heroines who are not constrained by gender-specific ideas (ibid.). To this end, an initial list of criteria for the selection of books was drawn up.
The educational stock was continuously built up and other activities were soon added: workshops, the book cases, participation in the Rallye Citoyen, the creation of the KEK dossiers (where children discover artists and composers), and many other projects. Most recently, CID was increasingly requested for educational activities and book tables, and the reading public also became younger.
We are now delighted to have received a generous grant from Luxembourg City for the expansion of our educational activities–and the MIFA has also provided funding for the infrastructure.
We were finally able to hire a gender education specialist who will conduct workshops in Luxembourg City schools on an ongoing basis, not just on the side (see https://cid-fg.lu/schulworkshops/). And we will have a veritable, appealing and child-friendly children’s and youth library with new shelves, play areas, and seating. The cramped, overcrowded shelves with their confusing layout will hopefully soon be a thing of the past.
Of course, we are proud to be able to pass on proven feminist traditions to our new “child”; a great deal of energy and a dedicated spirit of discovery has been channelled into the corresponding book sections to date. Today, the Gender Library offers more than 500 titles in the “School” and “Extracurricular Education” sections, “Family and Children” comprises more than 230 titles, and the “Children’s and Youth Literature” section contains more than 3,200 works. In addition, there are educational journals and varied works in other library sections that take an educational approach to the topics of art, music, media and culture, work and politics, history and philosophy, sexual and gender diversity.
Parents grow with their children…
However, some of the books and educational materials are getting on in years. We are therefore now taking the opportunity to do a thorough audit with the help of a volunteer team of experts. Three dedicated educators with a critical eye (see photo), including co-founder Colette Kutten, are scrutinising our stock: Are the books visually outdated? Are they diverse and appealing? Is the content up-to-date? Are important topics sufficiently represented, or do the books themselves contain clichés? Which new works should be purchased to fill the gaps?
These questions are supplemented by the endeavour to create a clear, updated system and list. More differentiated age recommendations and thematic stickers and updated keywords should soon make it easier to browse and find things on site and online.
Speaking of on site: Where does the space for our latest addition come from?
If you had come by in August, you would have had to climb over moving boxes and paint buckets and would have found one or two colleagues with a red head among the emptied folders and archive boxes. The space for the children’s and youth library is being created by the relocation of the CID offices to the 4th floor. But that’s not all: a very cosy and communicative reading area is being created in the large meeting room. Curious to find out more? Come by soon and try out the new CID!
[1] In: Sonja Kmec (ed.) The spectre of feminism. Women’s movement in Luxembourg, yesterday – today – tomorrow. Marburg: Jonas Verlag, 2012)
[2] In 2015, Enrica Pianaro and the CID developed a valuable tool: the Handout with criteria for selecting books that avoid stereotypes and present a realistic reflection of a more tolerant and diverse society . The criteria, summarised on two pages, take into account “over- and underrepresentation”, everyday racism, gender stereotypes, and sexual diversity (Pianaro 2015)
