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image above of the ADA logo in blue and white

Today, July 26, 2021, marks the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law. What is the ADA?

"The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became law in 1990. The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public. The purpose of the law is to make sure that people with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else." 

As we celebrate the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act today, it can be helpful to get back to the basics of the law. Check out @ADANational resources: https://t.co/xl8XHf4bu9 #ADA31 #ThanksToTheADA #ADA pic.twitter.com/judRscXeB3

— ACLgov (@ACLgov) July 26, 2021

You can learn a lot more about the ADA, including participation in training, on the ADA National Network site, as well as searching for information in our library resources via OneSearch.

It feels like we're constantly under heat and air quality advisories these days. Welcome to the Dog Days of Summer! What an odd expression. Did you ever wonder where it came from?

"What are the 'dog days' of summer?

The 'dog days' of summer comprise a period of extremely hot, humid, and sultry weather that traditionally occurs in the northern hemisphere in July and August (traditionally, the days run from July 3 through August 11). The term comes from the dog star, Sirius, in the constellation Canis Major. At this time of year, Sirius, the brightest visible star in the sky, rises in the east at the same time as the Sun. Ancient Egyptians believed that the heat of this brilliant star added to the Sun's heat to create hotter weather. Sirius was blamed for everything from the withering droughts to sickness to the discomfort that occurred during this time.

Hile, Kevin. "Weather fundamentals." The Handy Weather Answer Book, 2nd ed., Visible Ink Press, 2009, p. 1+. The Handy Answer Book Series. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A200117160/ITOF?u=cuny_hunter&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=68c06524. Accessed 15 July 2021. (NetID/password login required)

Wikipedia dives a little deeper, citing some classical references to the dog days in Homer. So it's not a modern phenomenon - it's something that has been noted, written about, and suffered through by humans for centuries. 

You can also find lots of advice and recommendations for everything from home furnishings to remedies to try during the hottest days of summer, as well as cool, shady places to visit, in the New York Times Historical database (NetID/password login required) going back to the 1850s.

Luckily, in NYC we can take advantage of the free public pools, or the many city-wide cooling centers to cool off a bit during the dog days of summer. However you choose to do it, we hope you are staying cool and we look forward to seeing you this fall!

Lead image: Hunter College Swimming Pool

The Wistarion, p. 50, 1969, Archives & Special Collections, Hunter College Libraries, Hunter College of the City University of New York, New York City. https://flic.kr/p/rYwQLm

Advertisement from the New York Times Historical database: "Display Ad 5 -- no Title." New York Times (1857-1922), Oct 28, 1884, pp. 8. ProQuest, http://proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.proxy.wexler.hunter.cuny.edu/historical-newspapers/display-ad-5-no-title/docview/94173517/se-2?accountid=27495.

Image of Statue of Liberty by William Warby on Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic.

Celebrate National Immigrant Heritage month by learning more about the heritage of fellow students. Search OneSearch for print books and online resources.

Until the Hunter College Libraries reopen and you can browse the shelves yourself, you can request books to pick up from the Cooperman Library or the Zabar Art Library using the Book Request Form. Remember to follow the Hunter College General Safety Guidelines before picking up your book(s).

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name

Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she

With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"



Emma Lazarus

November 2, 1883

Between May 31 and June 1st, 1921, a prosperous African American community in Tulsa, Oklahoma was viciously attacked by a white mob. Hundreds of residents were killed, over a thousand homes were destroyed and successful businesses were obliterated. President Biden visited the area to discuss what happened with survivors and current residents, the first time a president has done so.

For more information about this atrocity, try a search for 'Tulsa Race Massacre' in the OneSearch field on the Hunter College Libraries homepage.  Over 1200 results were returned that included the search term Tulsa riot, the term commonly used in the past. An article title in the search results attests to the significance of this change in term usage “Library of Congress Changes Subject Heading of the Tulsa Race Riot to the Tulsa Race Massacre" (login with NetID and password required). See the blog post on the Library of Congress' website that illustrates how news sources at the time handled coverage, Tulsa Race Massacre: Newspaper Complicity and Coverage. 

For a contemporary interactive article on the New York Times website, see What the Tulsa Race Massacre Destroyed. (Sign up for a free New York Times Academic Pass with your Hunter College email address.)

Image: “Tulsa’s Terrible Tale Is Told,” The Chicago Whip (Chicago, IL), June 11, 1921, p. 1. as shown on the blog post, Tulsa Race Massacre: Newspaper Complicity and Coverage.