BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
In observance of Immigrant Heritage Month,
Queens Public Library will launch a series of
programs and special events exploring the theme
“Bring Your Story” and celebrating the diverse
cultures of the “World’s Borough.”
“Queens Public Library is proud to serve the
most diverse population in the nation, and our recently
adopted tagline ‘We Speak Your Language,’ along with
our materials in more than 200 languages, translation
devices at every location and programs tailored to the
needs of immigrant communities reflect our values of
welcoming and inclusion,” said Queens Public Library
President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. “By asking
our customers to share their favorite recipes, photos,
folktales, traditions and stories of their journeys, we
aim to further embrace and preserve their immigrant
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experience, which defines so many Queens neighbor-hoods
and contributes to the rich fabric of our society.”
Throughout June, library visitors will get to share
their stories through recipes, traditional clothing, music
and dance, from Irish step to Chinese opera, as they
pay homage to the journey that their families took to
come to America.
To honor the culinary heritage of Queens immigrants,
QPL will compile its first-ever cookbook consisting
of recipes shared by patrons at Stories Around Food
activities held at each branch.
Each of the QPL branches will also have a world
map on display for customers to mark their family’s
journey to the U.S. As part of the library’s “Family
Heritage Project,” teens will be able to better un-derstand
their heritage, by tracing the first person
in their family to immigrate to America and where
they came from.
Several locations will host “Stories Around Clothes”
— multicultural mini-fashion shows, where patrons
will show off their traditional outfits from their an-cestral
country. The branches will also ask families
to participate in “Create Your Family Flag” activity,
where library goers will make a unique family flag
using colors, shapes and pictures that are meaningful
to them. As part of the Wikitongues Project, ESOL
students will be telling and writing their folktales in
their native languages.
Customers are also invited to bring photos and
other historic materials that tell their family’s story of
settling in the U.S., and specifically in Queens, at 20
libraries that will host Queens Memory Stations. Library
staff will scan their items and upload them through
queensmemory.org for submission to the library’s local
history collections.
For more information, visit preview.queenslibrary.org.
Community News
BRING YOUR STORY
Queens Public Library celebrates Immigrant
Heritage Month exploring the World’s
Borough’s diverse cultures
Photo courtesy of Queens Public Library
Throughout June, Queens Public Library will launch a series of programs
and special events embracing and preserving the immigrant experience.
/queensmemory.org
/www.qns.com
/www.qns.com
/preview.queenslibrary.org
