Celebrating Bethlehem's Southside Culture
The Moravians and their faith community are part of the history of Bethlehem’s creation. Yet besides having seen the Moravian architecture that still survives, many Bethlehem residents don’t know all that much about the historic Moravian community or individuals who lived within it. As part of Women’s History Month, Bethlehem Area Public Library (BAPL) offered…
These days, chimneys tend to be a part of a home we don’t think much about. Chimneys are simply decorative, rather than functional and necessary parts of the home. But chimneys are actually a fundamental habitat for another creature that they weren’t originally designed for. Chimneys are a central part of the larger ecosystem for…
H.D. and her poignant poetry continue to have wide resonance with readers around the world as well as a unique influence on her hometown, our Bethlehem community. On September 8th, Ice House Tonight hosted a live-streamed event to celebrate her influence and legacy by pairing readings of a selection of H.D.’s poems with the poetry…
On July 14th, BAPL began a series of workshops about race and racism facilitated by Linda Wiggins-Chavis. This series, called “Dialogues on Racial Justice: An Introductory Workshop Series on Issues of Systemic Racism in the United States,” continues the much needed work of grappling with racism in our communities in order to facilitate necessary institutional…
Joe Talbot’s debut film, “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” is a whimsical love letter to Talbot’s childhood friend Jimmie Fails and Talbot’s home, the San Francisco Bay Area. Closely mirroring the life of Jimmie Fails, who played himself in the film, the story takes up considerations of male friendship, toxic masculinity, identity, home…
This featured photo, “Southside Public Library,” by Ryder Griffith at Southside Proud, is licensed by CC. BY-NC 2.0. Bethlehem Area Public Library (BAPL) is taking action on the call by the Black Lives Matter movement and The Fight 4 Black Lives to have difficult conversations about race and racism in our communities and across America….
In 1976, Bethlehem Area Public Library’s (BAPL) South Side Branch became an intellectual haven for Bethlehem’s Latinx residents and a “fiesta para todos” would celebrate the library’s new multi-cultural vision and resources available for the Hispanic community. In 2019, through a Mellon Grant from Lehigh Valley Engaged Humanities Consortium and in partnership with Lehigh University‘s…
Despite my fear of sharing personal stories, Waxler created a space where vulnerability was not something to be feared, but something to be explored with kindness toward one’s self and other participants…
It was a dark, wet, and cold Wednesday night. The sun had long ago said its goodbyes, leaving the slickened streets to be illuminated by nothing but orange and purple string lights. Front lawns were home to eerie ghouls and rattling skeletons and grimacing jack-o-lanterns that matched the chill seeping into your bones. Bethlehem was…
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, one of the most widely read novels in high schools and universities, turns 200 this year. You might have heard about events relating to something called “Frankenreads” and wondered about the series. Well, Lehigh Valley residents can celebrate the momentous anniversary of Shelley’s text by taking part in a series of Frankenstein-related…