Honoring Tradition, Embracing Innovation: Reflections from the BLK Powerhouse Summit
I was recently invited to be a guest panelist for the BLK Powerhouse Summit — a virtual gathering of Black professionals across the book ecosystem designed to foster connection and drive solutions to some of our industry’s biggest challenges. The summit was geared toward Black professionals working anywhere in the book world — from book club leaders to publishers and everyone in between — and explored topics like building bookstore and library partnerships, creating community through book clubs, and saving Black-owned bookstores.
I was honored to share thoughts on a panel called “Innovative Libraries for Communities of Color.” There was much more I wanted to say, so I’m sharing a few of the questions the organizers asked me that we didn’t get to explore fully:
How have you seen libraries use technology to better serve marginalized communities, particularly Black and brown patrons?
I like to frame my approach around an acronym I call CHANCE — standing for Creativity, History, Art, Novelty, Culture, and Empowerment.
Libraries offer marginalized communities a real chance to amplify talents, preserve histories, fuel aspirations, and pursue opportunities on their own terms. Technology supports each part of CHANCE:
Creativity:
Black and brown communities have long been rich with creativity and innovation. Libraries help amplify this by providing makerspaces, podcast studios, 3D printers, sewing machines, and design software — tools that celebrate and expand the creativity already thriving in these communities.History:
Libraries safeguard historical records, oral histories, and archives that document the resilience, contributions, and lived experiences of marginalized communities. Technology helps us preserve and digitize these stories, ensuring they remain accessible for future generations.Art:
Through creative technologies like graphic design software, music production labs, and photography kits, libraries empower patrons to express themselves artistically — building new narratives that reflect personal and collective identities.Novelty:
Libraries introduce cutting-edge technologies like virtual reality, augmented reality, and robotics — ensuring that marginalized communities aren’t just included in innovation, but are leading it.Culture:
Libraries celebrate and elevate the rich cultural identities of Black and brown communities — through exhibitions, digitized cultural collections, storytelling festivals, and community memory projects that help affirm belonging and pride.Empowerment:
Ultimately, technology empowers patrons by providing tools for entrepreneurship, career advancement, education, and creative production — giving individuals the power to define and pursue their own futures.
Across all these areas, libraries use technology in two critical ways:
Providing access to technology — offering tools like Adobe Creative Cloud, laptops, podcasting gear, and VR equipment at no cost.
Providing access through technology — delivering remote learning, virtual exhibitions, telehealth services, and digital storytelling programs that transcend physical barriers.
At its heart, CHANCE recognizes that marginalized communities are not defined by scarcity — but by an abundance of imagination, resilience, knowledge, and cultural wealth. Technology, when thoughtfully deployed, helps unlock even greater possibilities.
What are some innovative programs you’ve launched that may not be traditionally associated with libraries—but have had a big impact?
Libraries can be engines of creativity, entrepreneurship, and cultural celebration, especially in Black and brown communities. A few standout examples:
Africana Arts & Humanities Festival (Broward County Library):
A three-day hybrid festival celebrating Black culture, resilience, and achievement through literature, music, genealogy, business, and the arts.Books for Good Trouble (San Diego Public Library):
A dialogue series pairing free BIPOC-authored books with community conversations around social justice, plus a podcast lifting up the voices of authors and activists.From Books to Bars with Frzy! (Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh):
A creative project blending hip-hop and children's literature to spotlight diverse voices, launched during a time of political attacks on inclusive books.
Closer to my own work, I helped launch the Innovator-in-Residence (IIR) program at Memphis Public Libraries. The IIR program connects working creatives with patrons to teach marketable skills, spark entrepreneurship, and build community networks.
We also invested in creative technologies not traditionally associated with libraries, such as:
Cricut Makers, sublimation printers, and heat presses for entrepreneurship.
VR headsets, robotics kits, and AR apps for immersive learning.
Podcast studios, sewing machines, and photography kits for storytelling and creative industries.
The goal was always the same: not just providing tools, but amplifying the brilliance and creativity already present.
How do you balance offering essential community services with maintaining core library functions?
Libraries must stay anchored in their essential services — especially in communities where they’re often the only consistent access point for opportunity and support. But staying true to the core doesn’t mean we can't also innovate.
One thing I appreciated about Memphis Public Libraries was how leadership expanded the definition of who could lead branches — welcoming individuals from beyond traditional library science backgrounds.
Community partnerships were just as critical. Organizations like the Memphis Library Foundation helped us raise funds, purchase new technology, and invite the broader community to invest in the library’s future.
Examples like the Innovator-in-Residence program and the "How To" Festival at Whitehaven Library showed how libraries can host innovation without losing sight of their core — by empowering more people to take part in shaping it.
How do you measure the impact of these innovative programs and ensure they remain sustainable?
We measure impact by asking: Did we expand equitable access to learning, resources, and community? Did we make a difference in people’s lives?
We look at participation growth, but more importantly, we ask:
Did patrons learn something new?
Build new skills?
Shift perspectives?
Take new actions?
Find new opportunities?
Connect with new people?
Sustainability comes from rooting programs in real community needs, building strong partnerships, staying flexible as technology and interests evolve, and empowering patrons to become leaders and champions.
When innovation is centered in community and relationships, it doesn’t just survive — it becomes part of the library’s DNA.
A big thanks to Leah Hernandez for the invitation to the BLK Powerhouse Summit. It was a wonderful event!
Libraries today are doing so much more than many people realize. I’m curious — what stood out to you? What new ideas or questions did it spark? Whether you're in the library world or just love learning and community, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Let’s keep the conversation open.