Author: David Bennett

Assistant Librarian (Promotions) at the University Library. An enthusiastic advocate of libraries, diversity, inclusion, equity, and social justice for all, inside and outside the workplace.

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Dungeons & Dragons has become very familiar across the decades since it first appeared in 1974.  However, it’s not the only roleplaying game by a long chalk and in the last half century there have been a multitude of D&D clones as well a vast variety of other games and genres.  From science fiction (such as Traveller) to gothic horror (e.g. Call of Cthulhu); from superheroes to secret agents, there’s almost certainly something to suit any interest.

Keeping track of all that history has been made somewhat easier by a recent University of Portsmouth Library acquisition, Designers & Dragons by Shannon Appelcline and published by Evil Hat Productions.  This four-volume set follows the history of games and publishers is an immensely readable and engaging.

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Some of our greatest thinkers and authors have been LGBTQ+. They have offered refreshingly different perspectives on everyday life and many wrote stories and essays that shared their intersectional lived experience as LGBTQ+ women and or people of the global …

Taking pride in LGBTQ+ authors Read more »

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On Monday 24 June 2024, two major updates will be applied to all our EBSCO databases, including the Discovery Service.  These databases will be running at risk all day, some services such as saving articles and searches and setting up search alerts may be affected by the changes and at some point the EBSCO Discovery Service interface used will change to a new, more intuitive design.

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Landscape

Today, we celebrate the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings that marked the beginning of the end for the Nazi regime and the turning point of the Second World War, LGBTQ+ Pride Month celebrating sexual and gender diversity around the world, and Gypsy, Roma, Traveller History Month celebrating the rich cultural diversity and history of this marginalised community.

D-Day was the start of the overthrow of the Nazi killing machine. The D-Day invasion represented a major turning point in the Allied battle against the Nazis that had systematically isolated and exterminated millions in an attempt to purge Nazi occupied territories of Jews, Roma, the disabled, LGBTQ+ people and other marginalised groups by forces including many LGBTQ+ people who were forced to conceal their sexual orientation from their own comrades.

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Lesbian, gay, bi, trans, intersex and asexual and other sexually and gender diverse people people have survived persecution and having their identities criminalised throughout history and continue to experience prejudice and discrimination around the world. Many LGBTQ+ people also experience intersectional oppression as a result of also their neurodivergent, PGM, and have other oppressed and other marginalised identities. This post begins to explore how you can help make the world a better place for everyone, including LGBTQ+ people.

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