Commemorating Day of the Dead / Conmemorando el Día de los Muertos

12/14/2022

John Barnett

No Subjects

The Latin American Student Organization (LASO), the South Carolina Centro Latino, and the USC Upstate Library are pleased to share their recent collaboration--an altar and an ofrenda (offering) commemorating el Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead.

The altar, decorated with images of calaveras (skeletons) and colorful designs reminiscent of papel picado (cut paper), pays tribute to famous Mexican personalities from the past. The ofrenda includes a sample of pan de muerto (bread of the dead), a pastry customarily served at Day of the Dead festivities, and marigolds, a flower traditionally associated with this important cultural celebration.

The altar also features print and digital books from the library's collection.

The exhibit will be on view on the library's 1st floor until Wednesday, November 23.

Day of the Dead altar and ofrenda

No Tags

Similar Posts

View All Posts

Library extended and overnight hours begin April 20

04/09/2025

John Barnett

0 Comments

On Easter Sunday, April 20, the USC Upstate Library will begin its overnight and extended hours schedule for the end of spring term and final exams. The library will be open 24 hours a day, 5 days a week, to accommodate your study, research, and computing needs. The library will also have extended hours on select Friday evenings and will be open its regular hours on Saturdays as well.

Here’s the end-of-semester schedule:

Sunday, April 20: Library opens at 2 pm and remains open continuously until Friday, April 25, at 12 midnight (24-hour schedule)
Saturday, April 26: Library is open from 10 am to 5 pm
Sunday, April 27: Library opens at 2 pm and remains open continuously until Friday, May 2, at 12 midnight (24-hour schedule)
Saturday, May 3: Library is open from 10 am to 5 pm
Sunday, May 4: Library opens at 2 pm and remains open continuously until Tuesday, May 6, at 12 midnight (24-hour schedule)

This schedule is based on available staffing and therefore is subject to change.

When the library is closed, students can get research help through the Ask a Librarian chat service. This service is staffed by real people (not bots!) and is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

For more information about library hours, including schedule changes, visit the Library Calendar; the library’s website; or check out the library’s social media presence on Facebook and Instagram.

No Subjects

What does religion sound like? Sounds of Religion exhibit

03/24/2025

John Barnett

0 Comments

Now on view on the USC Upstate Library terrace is Sounds of Religion, a Smithsonian poster exhibit that explores the diversity of American religious life through image and sound.

Choirs singing. Monks chanting. The reading of religious texts. These are religious sounds. But so are the creaking of church pews and the clanking of pots during the preparation of a communal meal. Sounds of Religion explores how rituals and gatherings of religious communities create a complex and varied soundtrack of religion in the United States.

Many of the posters in the exhibit features QR codes, which, through the use of a smart phone, allow exhibit viewers to listen to contemporary recordings representative of America's varied and distinct religious life. Americans practice many different systems of belief--Christianity; Judaism; Islam; Hinduism; Buddhism; Sikhism; Wicca; and Native American, African, African American, and New Age traditions. Every tradition creates its own unique blend of music, prayer, voices, and silence, which together help define the beliefs and practices shared by the members of churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, and other places of spiritual devotion.

Sounds of Religion is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services (SITES) in cooperation with the American Religious Sounds Project of The Ohio State University and Michigan State University. The exhibit is made possible through the generous support of The Henry Luce Foundation.

The exhibit will remain on view at USC Upstate through Ramadan, Easter, and Passover 2025.

No Subjects

Check out our Constitution Day and REACH Act resources

12/14/2022

John Barnett

0 Comments

In commemoration of Constitution Day (held this year on Saturday, September 17), we have created a library guide featuring foundational documents in American history and government.

This guide provides links to key documents including the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the Federalist Papers, among many others. South Carolina Act 26 of 2021, better known as the REACH Act, requires undergraduate students to complete a three-credit course that involves reading these and other founding documents.

This guide also offers background information on the REACH Act, including related guidelines from the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (CHE); resources documenting segregation, integration, the Civil Rights Movement, and other aspects of the African American Freedom Struggle; additional readings on Indigenous People's rights and justice; and a list of current USC Upstate courses that fulfill REACH Act requirements.

History / Political Science, African American Studies