Scrolling through my feed, I paused on a scrum of energetic kids, all smiles in several classroom snapshots. Christopher Emdin is among them, but these go beyond mere selfies. 

Emdin, the Maxine Greene Chair for Distinguished Contributions to Education and Professor of Science Education at Teachers College, ­Columbia University, is pictured actively engaging the students. Leaning in and getting down to their level to communicate with them, he is right with the kids and fully present. Turns out Emdin’s November 7 post was just the thing I needed in that moment. 

“Spent some time visiting classrooms this week. It’s almost like the divine knew I would need my ­reserve of love and hope filled to help me through this morning,” he wrote on LinkedIn, alongside the photos. “I know many of us are disappointed this morning. Remember that the children are watching. They are taking cues on how to respond in moments like these by watching us. Do not descend into anger or worse…apathy. Disappointment is ­understandable, but then we get on the offense.

“This is the season where we dream and work. Don’t get baited into a cycle of despondence. Our babies are watching, listening, learning and through our work, creating what is yet to come. Never give up!!!!!! Keep doing your work!!!!”

We, at SLJ, recognize the fear and uncertainty among our readers. At press time, the full effect of the 2024 election remains to be seen. Yet the stated goals of President-Elect Donald Trump regarding education, intellectual freedom, the welfare of young people, and other issues set to affect this community have many of us deeply concerned about the future (See "Election Impact: What Will a Second Trump Term Mean for Education and Libraries?.”) 

Acts of hate have occurred nationwide. Just days after the election, text messages were delivered to Black men, women, and students in at least 25 states, reports CBS News, invoking slavery, with references to “picking cotton” and plantations. Kids as young as middle schoolers have received such texts, some of which also cite the election.

The Trevor Project saw a 700 ­percent spike in calls to its crisis hotline post-election, ­according to the suicide prevention organization for LGBTQIA+ young people. “Our commitment to ­LGBTQ+ youth has always been about people, not politics,” wrote Jaymes Black, Trevor CEO, in a post-election ­message, who pledges to work with all political leaders “who share our mission of ending LGBTQ+ youth suicide.” 

Meanwhile, Anne Arundel (MD) schools superintendent Mark T. Bedell called on leaders in the county to join him in denouncing the racist texts ­received by local middle school students “loudly and unequivocally.”

“Every single one of our children deserves the opportunity to grow up in a society where they feel they can belong, grow, and succeed,” wrote Bedell in a November 8 note to the school community. “That’s the vision of our school system, but it should be something we all embrace.”

A safe, encouraging environment for all young people—what should be a given feels like something worth recommitting to in this particular moment. It’s also something that we must demand of ­national leadership.

SLJ is here with you on this journey, and we pledge our ongoing support of you and your work with our work. It’s never been more critical to align with our partner ­organizations and leaders toward this end. 

EveryLibrary has summarized the implications for libraries, a must read: "This Election Should Not Determine the Fate of Libraries (But it Might Have). 

As always, I look forward to hearing from you.