The Constitution of the State of Alaska was adopted by the Alaska Constitutional Convention on February 5, 1956 and ratified by the people of Alaska April 24, the same year. We now celebrate April 24th as Alaska Constitution Day (which was yesterday). We’ve highlighted some resources below so that you can dive deeper into the Alaska State Constitution!

The book Alaska’s constitution: a citizen’s guide by Gordon Harrison is a good primer if you’re not familiar with the Alaska Constitution. The fifth edition was updated in 2021 and summarizes the creation of the constitution and discusses some of the political history and judicial interpretations since then. It is available at the Consortium Library to be checked out. You can read Alaska’s Constitution in full here.

The book Alaska’s constitutional convention by Vic Fischer was published by ISER in 1975. Fisher served as one of the delegates to the constitutional convention and recounts the story of how how the Alaska constitution came to be. Find this text at the Consortium Library in the Alaskana Collection or in ARLIS. Vic Fischer was the last surviving signer of Alaska’s constitution and passed away at the age of 99 in 2023. You can read more about him here.

The article Alaska Native perspectives on the Alaska constitution by William L. Iggiagruk Hensley and John Sky Starkey provides a counter-perspective on the creation of the Alaska Constitution and the ways in which Alaska Native voices were excluded from the process. Part one of the article was adapted from a panel discussion that took place in 2018. Find the full text here (be sure to login for off-campus access first if you are accessing from home).

The Alaska Law Review had a number of articles addressing varying aspects of the Alaska Constitution and how it impacts Alaskans. These include:

• The unique promise of the Alaska constitution: the right to rehabilitation by Adam Beyer, published 2023.
• Alaska’s constitution and felony disenfranchisement: a historical and legal analysis by J C Croft, published 2019.
• Of time, place, and the Alaska constitution by Alan G Tarr, published 2018.
• The Alaska constitution and the future of individual rights by Erwin Chemerinsky, published 2018.

Want to explore further? The Archives and Special Collections has a number of collections related to the Alaska Constitution, including the personal papers of some of the delegates to the Constitutional Convention. Browse through the collections here and contact the Archives directly to make an appointment to see the collections.

Exploring the collections of poetry available at the UAA/APU Consortium Library isn’t just for English majors – there’s a poet out there for everyone! If you’re feeling inspired to dabble in poetry this month, we’ve highlighted a few titles that are available here at Consortium below. This is just a small taste – there’s a lot more that you can find in the catalog!

In the Current Where Drowning is Beautiful by Abigail Chabitnov is a collection of poems that use both English and Alutiiq to respond to the silencing of indigenous women, especially in light of the crisis of murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. This is the author’s second collection of poetry and was published in 2022. Chabitnov is a member of the Tangirnaq Native Village in Kodiak, Alaska, and grew up in Pennsylvania. She is also the winner of the Colorado Book Award for Poetry.

Furious Flower: Seeding the Future of African American Poetry, edited by Joanne V. Gabbin and Lauren K. Alleyne, is an anthology of more than one hundred African American poets, many of whom are award-winning. Spanning generations and aesthetics, this collection was made with the intent of creating a narrative of African American poetry through the 20th and 21st centuries. Anthologies are an excellent way to be exposed to different poets, poetry styles, and subjects.

Daughters of Latin America: An International Anthology of Writing by Latine Women, edited by Sandra Guzman, is a collection that includes works by 140 Latin poets, writers, and activists from around the world. It spans different languages, traditions, and genres and includes both classic and contemporary works.

Poetry Unbound: Poems and New Media from the Magic Lantern to Instagram by Mike Chasar isn’t a collection of poetry but it explores the ways in which poetry has transformed to fit the mediums of the 21st century, making poetry more easily accessible and widely consumed by the public.

Continue to explore the books of and about poetry in the Consortium Library catalog.