A Call to Action

The ALA Code of Ethics Item 9 is inspiring and also reads like a call to action: We affirm the inherent dignity and rights of every person. We work to recognize and dismantle systemic and individual biases; to confront inequity and oppression; to enhance diversity and inclusion; and to advance racial and social justice in our libraries, communities, profession, and associations through awareness, advocacy, education, collaboration, services, and allocation of resources and spaces. Though this is last on the list, it seems to underlie everything above, creating a foundation for the Big Why of what libraries do and how they do it, regardless of what specialization or sector the library occupies. Whenever in doubt, this provision guides us to the librarianship standard. In much the same way that basic labor laws are posted at the workplace and that Patient’s Rights are posted in medical clinics, I’d like to see the ALA Code of EthicsLinks to an external site.Links to an external site., ALA Core ValuesLinks to an external site.Links to an external site., and the ALA Library Bill of RightsLinks to an external site.Links to an external site. posted in every library. The Attendant Freedom to Read should be posted as well, especially in the children’s area. Provision 1 of the Freedom to Read StatementLinks to an external site.Links to an external site. states “It is in the public interest for publishers and librarians to make available the widest diversity of views and expressions, including those that are unorthodox, unpopular, or considered dangerous by the majority.”  This is paramount for patrons to understand that they have the right to expect the library to act as a portal into the unknown, even (and possibly especially) when the unknown leads to topics and content deemed unorthodox, unpopular, or dangerous by the majority. Beyond just presenting ideas and materials, this statement makes clear that the library is -- by design and as a mission -- a safe space for oddities. Many of those who found themselves in libraries were able to do so because they themselves were deemed unorthodox, unpopular, or dangerous by the majority.  

In her 2018 article “Ethics, values, and intellectual freedom in school libraries,” Dr. Oltmann found that school librarians seem to have the least support for ALA ethic of resisting censorship and ALA core of democracy, and that these two elements are difficult to see as relevant to their regular work life in school libraries. I find it very interesting that school librarians are likely to self-censor on diversity and inclusion lines with regards to materials, and that they often use age-appropriate factors in limiting materials in the school library, while also skewing towards reflecting existing community diversity. This seems like a natural human inclination, but one that is problematic in terms of the ALA professional standards. 

Degrees of Freedom

Do we live in an information society?

One of the things that struck me as I read John Feather's introduction to The Information Society was that the difference the Information Age brought was that beforehand, in the Manufacturing Age, technological advances allowed us to do our jobs better; after the "revolution" that Feather describes, technology was the job itself. This is a huge shift in its own right, but still has tethers to the old way: spreadsheets could be (tediously) done by hand in ledgers; even space flight could be 'computed' by a single woman in a NASA office. Since then, the work that we do cannot be replicated outside the virtual technological space in which it takes place: mapping the genome, for instance, is simply not humanly possible.

But for the idea of an information society to be evaluated, I think the emphasis is on society more than information. Our social interactions, not just our vocations, are now built on foundations that assume a level of information availability. This presents as everything from googling answers at a table to feeling deeply connected to virtual friends while barely recognizing neighborhood residents. The socialization of information networks has also created a major ripple in the social fabric, leaving those who are not able to participate in the social stream as nonentities more often than not, without access to the basic framework of adult citizenship. I remember when we thought that the internet would be the great democratizer, and in many ways it still is. But with phones that cost over a thousand dollars, with platforms that eat huge amounts of data, the digital revolution has been leveraged into the land of the Haves v. the Have-nots once again. I'm increasingly experiencing news "articles" that are actually videos, and this change in format -- without the text component of the traditional written article -- means that many people simply cannot access that piece of information.
The idea of social currency is also being impacted, in that the idea of "followers" to a feed or "likes" to a post have real social meaning, at least in the moment, and fame seems to be shorter and shorter. Andy Warhol's "fifteen minutes of fame" might well be only fifteen seconds these days, if that.

I think we absolutely live in an information society, and the fact that outside agents chose to target information social networks as a valuable asset for hacking speaks volumes. Our social interaction with digital information and the media continues to be as meaningful a piece of the infrastructure as the electricity grid or clean water delivery.

A walk

Ended up craving more time walking, so I headed down the Greenway toward the swing where I used to walk every morning.

It was just over 2 miles to the swing, 4.25 round trip, and the bath afterward was exactly right. There is a little free library at the sidewalk near the swing, and I might have to make more use of it. The selection wasn't great, so that's all the more reason to put better books in there.

That's probably a walk that needs to happen again in my life, possibly often.

After the bath, I headed to the library to renew a book, print some stuff and basically recharge my library batteries. I suppose other folks might not have those, but I certainly do. The project for the library school class has entered the next phase, round 3 of 4, and life is good. I like my team.

Tonight is As You Like It at the Lime Kiln, and I'm looking forward to a play. La Boheme was nice, but opera is different, and Charlotte's Web was excellent, but not quite the same thing at all. I know I know: I'm splitting hairs.

Nonetheless, I'm looking forward to it.

The pace of my life has been brutal since mid June

The pace of my life has been brutal since mid June, but the end is in sight, at least for this round. I'm still measuring everything an hour at a time, but the pressure should let up about half past Tuesday.

Despite the juggling act required, the library school projects have been informative in a substantive way; the discussions continue to inspire.

Looking forward.