Asian-American LawLibrarians Caucus Newsletter Volume 3, No. 2, Fall 1997ISSN 1084-9068
Let's Elect Frank
People and Happenings
New Officers & Committees
Out of the Caucus
Minutes of the Business Meeting
Caucus Survey Report
From the Editor's Shelf
Application for Caucus Membership
The Technology Front
Let's Elect Frankby the EditorGreat News! Frank Y. Liu, President of the Asian-American Law Librarians Caucus, Director of the Law Library and Professor of Law at Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, has recently been nominated to the position of the Executive Board of American Association of Law Libraries. Frank has been involved in our Caucus affairs for a long time and was just installed as President of our organization last July.
First, congratulations are due to Frank for this honorable event. All members of our Caucus also should be congratulated for having its leader nominated to a leadership position in the national organization of our profession.
Second, let's start working to get Frank elected to the Board. I know from personal experience that Frank is a person of ability, enthusiasm, service, energy and creativity. Frank has been active in and out of the ALL for many years. And his activities demonstrate that he is capable of leadership. As you may remember, Frank, as chair of the Local Arrangements Committee, played a good host at the 1995 AALL convention in Pittsburgh. Logistically, Frank was instrumental in organizing a superb national conference. Frank is definitely a capable leader and a great human being to work with. What's more about him is that he, as a member of our Asian American community, really understands the issues and concerns of our own. We owe ourselves a favor to elect a member of our community to the leadership of the national organization. Frank, if elected, will be ably representing our interests and concerns before the AALL.
If you wish to help our organization and our cause, vote for Frank next spring when the ballot is out. Spread the word about Frank to other law librarians as well. The more mobilized we are, the more likely we will succeed in this effort.
Last July, the Caucus decided to distribute the Newsletter exclusively through web posting or electronic mail. Thus, this is the last issue of the newsletter which will be in print and sent to all by postal mail. From the next issue on, we will notify you by email when a new issue is out on the web. If you have NO access to the Internet and/or an email account and wish to continue getting the newsletter by U.S. mail, please let the editor know as soon as possible.
People and Happenings
Penny P. Zhao (zhao@law.cua.edu), Catalog Librarian at Judge Kathryn J. DuFour Law Library, Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., now serves as President for the Academic SIS, Law Librarians' Society of Washington, D.C. Her term expires in 1998. On another matter, Penny successfully moderated a program on discrimination against Asian-Americans in the AALL annual convention in Baltimore in July, 1997.
Bill B. McCloy (wbmccloy@u.washington.edu), Assistant Librarian for Comparative Law, University of Washington Law Library, Seattle, Washington, has recently been elected and installed as Chair of the Foreign, Comparative and International Law SIS of the AALL.
Vianne Sha (sha@law.missouri.edu), Automation & Bibliographic Management Librarian, School of Law Library, University of Missouri-Columbia, presented a program on "Web-interfaced OPAC: Design and Maintenance" at the 1997 AALL annual meeting. This presentation is available from the Internet at:
http://www.law.missouri.edu/vianne/webpac/sld001.htm. In addition, Sha has added a keyword searchable search engine for her website "Internet Library for Librarians." This website can be viewed from: http://www.itcompany.com/inforetriever/
Louise Tsang (ltsang@yorku.ca), Reference Librarian, York University Law Library, North York, ON, Canada, recently joined the AALLC as a member. Welcome on board, Louise!!
Out of the Caucus
The Library of Congress celebrated the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month last May by holding a symposium on Hong Kong history and culture, which was attended by prominent China scholars, U.S. officials and attorneys. The program also marked the opening of an exhibition at the Library, "Hong Kong: From Fishing Village to Financial Center." In connection to this event, a feature article entitled "Hong Kong: From Fishing Village to Financial Center," by Judy Lu Kestell and Harold Meinheit, is issued in Library of Congress Information Bulletin, Vol. 56, No. 13 (August 1997), 272-275.
President Clinton nominated Bill Lann Lee as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. Lee, son of a Chinese immigrant family, is currently director of the Western Regional Office of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. President Clinton made the nomination last June, and the Senate began the confirmation hearings in October. If confirmed, as widely believed, Lee will become the first Asian American to be in charge of the Justice Department's civil rights division.
Caucus Survey Report
In the last issue, we enclosed a Member Survey form, and asked you to complete it. We've received seventeen surveys back so far. Here is what the members said (the figures indicate the number of responses).
I. As an Individual, What Do You Want from the Caucus?
a. Advocacy = 7
b. Career advancement = 2
c. Leadership training = 3
d. Networking = 7
e. Subject expertise development = 6
f. International exchanges = 5
g. All of above = 7
h. Other = 0
II. In Your Opinion, the Caucus Primarily Should Remain a
a. Social gathering = 1
b. Advocacy group = 0
c. Both a & b = 16
d. Place for developing expertise = 1
III. In Your Opinion, Has the Caucus Functioned in a Way Which is Relevant to Your Concerns or Interests?
a. Yes = 9
b. No = 3
IV. Which of the Following Caucus- Related Activities Do You Like to Attend?
a. Business Meeting = 13
b. Educational programs = 17
c. Social events = 17
V. Please Answer the Following Questions:
a. What is the niche of the Caucus in the AALL?
* A haven for Asian-Americans and friends;
* To provide fellowship and educational; programs for Asian-American law librarians and others interested in Asian law;
* To help professional growth of members and strengthen the AALL's diversity program;
* To promote our Caucus and make it more visible;
* To represent Asian-American law librarians and work closely with others, i.e., African-American Law Librarians Caucus and other caucuses.
b. How does the Caucus relate to other groups of the AALL?
* It should work more closely with other ethnic caucuses;
* Needs more communication with other groups;
* We can jointly sponsor programs;
* Very well, but in need of more visibility;
* To cooperate with all groups;
* To cooperate with other groups of the AALL and establish liaisons with other professional groups, i.e., ALA.
c. Should we develop a coalition of groups of common interest within the AALL?
* Yes = 5
* Yes, especially as it relates to recruitment of minority librarians to law libraries;
* We should, but so far looks not too much common interest we developed;
* Definitely. It is vital that AALLC works with other groups within the AALL to form "one voice."
d. How can we as a group add value to the AALL?
* By showing Asian-American cultures with AALL membership;
* Participate in more events and speak more;
* We can provide subject expertise development programs;
* By sponsoring more Asian-American law-related programs;
* Sponsor some good workshops at AALL meeting;
* Contribute good, interesting programs at the AALL annual meeting;
* Diversity; to be more aware of the world
More recruitment activities
* Realize that some members still do not understand the diversity issues. We should work actively to offer advice to the Executive Board "on mechanisms and programs that encourage a diverse and complex membership."
Minutes of the Business MeetingSubmitted byJonathan Franklin (Secretary/Treasurer)
The 1997 business meeting of the Asian- American Law Librarians Caucus
(AALLC) was held on Monday, July 21, 1997, at 5:15 in Room BCC-311 of the Baltimore Convention Center. Approximately 30 members attended the meeting. The meeting was called to order by President-Elect Frank Liu in place of President Nancy Cheng, who was unable to attend.
1. Announcements. Several announcements were made on the banquet location, the D-3 program sponsored by Dan Wade with Professor Penny Zhao, and the request for AALLC donations. More announcements were made by Bill McCloy about the FCIL-SIS Clearinghouse for International Placements needing forms translated into Chinese, Japanese, and Korean and Cossette Sun about the Diversity Committee's symposium on affirmative action. Dan Wade added that the Diversity Committee symposium is available on cassette. The University of Texas has created a fellowship for lawyers entering library school and solicits applications.
2. Adopting the Minutes. The minutes of the business meeting held on July 22, 1996 were submitted by Secretary/Treasurer Jonathan Franklin. Frank Liu asked for someone to move to adopt the minutes as printed in the Asian-American Law Librarians Caucus Newsletter, Vol. 2, No. 2. The motion was made and seconded and the minutes were adopted.
3. Approval of the Financial Report (7/1/96 -6/30/97). Secretary/Treasurer Jonathan Franklin reported that our beginning balance was $199.88. Over the year, there was an income of $120.00 and expenditures of 159.03. Our closing balance as of June 30, 1997 was 160.85. AALL accounting showed our account at 159.99 as of June 30, 1997 and the Secretary/Treasurer reported that the 86 cent difference was being sorted out. It was moved that the Financial Report be accepted. This was seconded and the Report was adopted. Kai-Yun Chiu proposed seeking donations from publishers. This idea was discussed briefly.
4. Committee Reports. The Publicity Committee, chaired by Dan Wade, reported that the green pamphlet had been updated with new information, the AALLC website, and the new officers. Dan Wade was thanked for his work on the pamphlet. The Directory Committee, chaired by Heija Ryoo, reported that the directory is up to date at the website and that new names are added as new members join, whether or not they donate to AALLC. The Newsletter Committee, chaired by Haibin Hu, reported that the latest issue was more expensive because it included a survey. Both Haibin and Frank encouraged returning the survey as soon as possible. For those who could not complete it at the Annual Meeting, they should send it in. On another topic, Haibin solicited names for the APEC program being sponsored by the Caucus in Anaheim. Frank and those present congratulated Haibin on a job well done. The Program Committee, chaired by Mila Rush, reported that last year two topics were initially proposed. One, the session on Asian-Americans Facing Discrimination, was completed and was going to appear as session D-3 in Baltimore. The other one, on ASEAN, was not ready and was being prepared for submission for the Anaheim Meeting. The Program Committee of the Caucus was submitting that APEC program this year. The Nominating Committee, chaired by Wei Luo, nominated Mon-Yin Lung to be the President-Elect. As a major force in founding the Caucus, she should preside during the tenth year of the Caucus. Her nomination and election were unanimous.
5. The Incoming President's Remarks. Frank passed out Committee Preference Forms. Stating that a Caucus that had many active members would remain strong, he encouraged everyone to volunteer to serve on a committee. In order to get the planning work started quickly, Frank appointed Wei
Luo as the Chair of the Program Committee.
Frank also circulated extra Membership Survey Forms to supplement those distributed in the Newsletter. Frank also laid out a challenge to the Caucus to create an innovative program for 1999 involving Asian-American leadership training. Wei Luo was placed in charge of this effort. Among the suggestions were to bring in a corporate trainer, include a panel of Asian-American law library directors, and possibly a panel of Caucasian-American directors or department heads who were also AALLC members to comment on their experiences. This would meet the Caucus's goal of offering useful and practical programs. Frank further proposed a Long-term Planning Committee. The committee will be made up of all former presidents and interested members. As its
model, it should review the form and content of Dick Danner's strategic plan for AALL and attempt to create a similar plan for the AALLC.
6. Further Comments from Attendees. Mon Yin Lung mentioned that Jack T. Sheng is retiring. She proposed sending him a card. Frank will send Jack a retirement card on behalf of the Caucus. Discussion returned to the Newsletter and it's electronic distribution. Haibin Hu raised the question of the future of the Newsletter. After discussion, it was decided that Volume 3, Number 2 would be the final issue printed and sent to everyone. After that, it would be mailed only to those without web access. There will be a note to that effect in Volume 3, No. 2. After Kai-Yun Chiu suggested pursuing advertising in the Newsletter, Mon-Yin Lung suggested that there may be problems with a Caucus soliciting donations from publishers in exchange for advertising. Haibin will look into this. It was agreed that Haibin will alert us to new issues though the AALLC listserv. Furthermore, Haibin will continue to archive all issues. Wei Luo raised the issue of the need to educate all AALL members about the future of Asian countries and their changing legal systems and related an anecdote suggesting that this could be a topic for a future program. Frank encouraged Haibin to attend the General Program Committee Meeting to get more information about the program specifications for Anaheim and to show the AALLC flag at the meeting. Mila Rush raised the question about the difference between the Newsletter Committee and the Publicity Committee. It was mentioned that the Newsletter Committee dealt with communication among members and the Publicity Committee dealt with recruitment of new members. Mon-Yin Lung thanked Frank for leading the meeting and a motion was made to adjourn the meeting. That motion was seconded and voted on and the meeting was adjourned.
From the
Editor's Shelf
Asia in General Comparative Studies on the Judicial Review System in East and Southeast Asia. Edited by Yong Zhang. The Hague; Boston: Kluwer Law International, 1997.
China - Hong Kong
The Life and Death of a Joint Venture in China. 2nd ed. Edited by Donald J. Lewis. Hong Kong: Asia Law & Practice Publishers, 1996.
Intellectual Property Law in China. By Peter Feng. Hong Kong: Sweet & Maxwell Asia, 1997.
Hong Kong's New Constitutional Order: the Resumption of Chinese Sovereignty and the Basic Law. By Yash Ghai. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 1997.
Legal Research: a Guide for Hong Kong Students. By Jill Cottrell. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 1997.
Political Economy of Corruption in China. By Julia Kwong. Armonk: M.E. Sharpe, 1997.
Indonesia
Indonesian Law at the Crossroads: Commentary and Materials. By John Ball. Kingsgrove: Oughtershaw Press, 1996.
Japan
Japanese Legal System: Text and Materials. By Meryll Dean. London: Cavendish Publishing, 1997.
Criminal Law of Japan: the General Part. By Shigemitsu Dando, translated by B.J. George. Littleton, CO: Fred Rothman & Co., 1997.
Philippines
Constitutionalism in the Philippines: with Complete Texts of the 1987 Constitution and Other Previous Organic Acts and Constitutions. By Rufus B. Rodriguez. Manila: Rex Book Store, Inc., 1997.
Application for Caucus Membership
Name______________________________
Institution__________________________
___________________________________
Mailing Address_____________________
___________________________________
___________________________________
Phone No.__________________________
Fax No.____________________________
E-mail_____________________________
[ ] I have enclosed a check of $10, as a voluntary contribution to the Asian- American Law Librarians Caucus. (Please note that your check must be made payable to American Association of Law Libraries, instead of the Caucus. However, you should note on the back of the check "for AALLC".) Please send your completed application to:
Jonathan Franklin Secretary/Treasurer1515 Montclair PlaceAnn Arbor, MI 48104The Technology Front
In accordance with OCLC Newsletter, March/April 1997 (at 13), 173 libraries in Asia Pacific region joined OCLC in 1996, which brings the total number of Asia Pacific institutions using OCLC products and services to 649. Andrew H. Wang, director of OCLC Asia Pacific Services said, "Librarians in Asia Pacific are enthusiastic about OCLC because they are aware of its long history of providing efficient, effective services."
In addition, OCLC Newsletter, July/ August 1997 (at 22-23), reports that China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) in Shanghai, China, is the first in China to use OCLC cataloging service and OCLC CJK software. This report also says that Shanghai Library is the second Chinese library to use OCLC Cataloging system. Shanghai Bell, a Sino-Belgian joint venture, is the third Chinese institution to use the OCLC Cataloging and ILL services.
Furthermore, OCLC Newsletter, May/ June, 1997, states that OCLC AsiaLink, which is based in San Jose, California, celebrated its first anniversay in April, 1997. The AsiaLink service provides collection development, acquisions and cataloging for Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese materials.
Editor: Haibin Hu
HTML editing: Wei Luo
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