The library profession, like many others throughout the country, is one that is still plagued by a diversity problem. The importance of a diverse culture in libraries is as important now as it has ever been due to the current exodus of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion departments across the college campuses due to the current political climate, and the increase in book bans surrounding diverse stories. An overarching problem in the profession is that diversity is still nonexistent, and a change needs to be made for libraries to truly help all who need their resources. “It has long been argued that the library and information workforce should reflect the diversity inherent in the communities they serve” (Hallam et al. 2022, p. 62).
So, why is it that in urban populations where the majority of people that the library serves are diverse, that librarians are still inherently white? In a study on how to increase diversity in the field by using key performance indicators, Hallam et al., stated that a majority of those who took their survey “believed that it was very important to create a more diverse workforce, but that admittedly, to date, relatively little had been done to measure progress through KPIs” (Hallam et al. 2022, p. 62). Creating this diverse workforce is a lot harder to achieve when there has been decades of implicit bias against not only the profession but also diverse populations. In order to better serve the communities that represent the large populations, much needs to be done, as people are more likely to enter a place where they feel represented verses one that lacks it.
Why are libraries so white? Is a topic of interest for many who enter the profession have asked as it brings forward many questions as to why it is this way. One of the first key issues that surrounds the topic of a diverse workforce in libraries is the topic of othering those who are not inherently known or thought of as someone who should or could be a librarian. According to the Encyclopedia of Critical Psychology, the term “Othering” refers to,
the process whereby an individual or groups of people attribute negative characteristics to other individuals or groups of people that set them apart as representing that which is opposite to them. It refers to more than just stereotyping, as this can involve making generalizations about groups of people which may be positive or negative. Othering includes an affect component, where those that are othered are irrationally feared, even hated. (Rohleder, 2014, p. 1306)
The topic of othering one that can affect a wide array of populations, not just those who are ethnically diverse but also those who are in the LGBTQIA+ community as well as those in religious communities that are outside of the normal white Christian/Catholic communities known throughout the United States. Megerman states their experience in entering their profession as someone is Jewish working in a law library, “I am asked this question so often that I know they are asking about my ethnicity (and many do come right out and ask, even if offensive, “What are you? . . . Um, human?”) I always cutely reply I am from Kansas City, as that is where I am from. Within minutes of meeting me, knowing nothing else about me, whether we are in a group or one-on-one, people find it appropriate to ask me personal questions about my family and heritage.” (Megerman, 2021, p. 39) The issues of how diversity in this paper is framed more towards people of color, it is worth noting that this happens throughout all diverse populations.
When focusing on where the people of color are in libraries, it’s very easy to see that many of them aren’t in positions that would require degrees in graduate education which is needed to become a librarian. “Historically, library studies have shown individuals of color are predominantly in para-professional roles” (Sanchez-Rodriguez, 2021, p.188). The roadblocks that people of color face in order to become a librarian is not only economical but also with the lack of professional development that they would receive. In “Creating a More Diverse Workforce: How the AALL George A. Strait Minority Scholarship & Fellowship Program is supporting future minority law librarians”, it is noted by the authors how difficult it truly is from one of the participants, stating that “At the time, I was hiring for a position in my own academic law library, and I noticed that the candidates of color often did not have the elite schools, prestigious internships, or other indicators that would make their resumes competitive with the best of the best” (Dalton et al., 2021, p. 21). This is one of the many roadblocks faced by diverse populations in the field, as they don’t have the same opportunities as those who entered programs that would support them in the future.
Another issue with diversity in the profession has to do with how these underrepresented groups are presented when it comes to faculty in Universities, if you cannot see someone in the position you want to be in it’s harder for you to feel welcomed in that job after graduation. “The profession has been trying to do a better job about recruiting but the worrisome fact is– that while the number of underrepresented groups attending colleges and universities across the nation has risen, their ranks among the faculty teaching these students has not kept pace with the level of diversity present in the population being served.” (Riley-Reid, 2017, p. 392) The difficulties of going into post-secondary education when you’re a part of an underrepresented group of the population contributes to the lack of diverse librarians. “Practically speaking, though, LIS education occupies only 2–3 years of a professional’s life. LIS education is one aspect of their background that most librarians have in common, but, realistically, librarians’ prior life experiences, their workplaces, and their involvement in professional associations will occupy much more time than their LIS education” (Adkins et al., 2015, p.140) That small amount of time studying the profession a librarian can learn a lot, but the difficulties that come afterwards are based on the experiences they gained not only in school but also from the work they did outside of their program, as stated before, not all who join the profession will have the same opportunities as others.
What is the number of librarians of color working in the profession? VanScoy and Bright write about the problems the profession faces when it comes to the progression of diversifying the profession, stating that “As it currently stands, the experiences of librarians of color remain largely hidden. Librarians of color make up a very small proportion of the profession (only 12%, according to ALA’s [2012] Diversity Counts), so their voices do not gain the power to be heard within the dominant conversation. When preliminary results from this study were presented at conferences, attendees often expressed shock at the experiences of their colleagues of color, indicating a lack of awareness or possibly obliviousness to the different experiences of librarians of color.” (VanScoy & Bright, 2019, pp. 285-286) When only a small percentage of the profession is someone of color it makes it difficult to be able to show that to those who interact with those who work in libraries. There is also the small factor of the job of a librarian being classified as a “pink-collared” job, which “have historically been dominated by women,” and that “Even though these fields require professional education, many people still hold stereotyped views of those who work in them.” (Gaines, 2014, p.85) This also means that “Librarianship has struggled to be recognized as a legitimate profession. Similar to nursing, social work, counseling and therapy, education, etc., librarianship is considered a feminized profession or a second career option” (Lopez-Fitzsimmons & Nagra, 2021, p.314). Because of these stereotypes associated with the profession there is also the possibility that it could be difficult for a person of color to move into it without hardships.
The role of diversity in the library is not only to help those in the community, but also to help the community see themselves represented in the library within their neighborhoods. The problem with this is that there are still leaps to be made for people of color to be represented not just as leaders in the library professions but all professions. These efforts have been building for decades though it’s still an impossible feat, as noted by Grissom who writes that,
“Efforts to protect marginalized and minority groups from workplace discrimination go back decades: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 established a federal law that prohibits employers from discriminating against employees because of race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. More than fifty years later, despite progress, women and minorities remain underrepresented across the top decision-making levels in workplaces across the United States.” (Grissom, 2018, p.242)
Discrimination is still something that perseveres even in the twenty-first century, it’s on television, in the streets we walk in, the laws being made today. Who has the privilege of being in the profession? “The safety of the conversation is predicated on the white privilege to only take part in activities when they don’t cause discomfort or risk—a privilege that marginalized groups aren’t allowed.” (Hines, 2018, p.20)
So, what can libraries do to further their pursuit of diversity when it seems as though everything is working against progressing this, the first step is acknowledging the problems within the profession. In the paper “Professional Pathways: Strategies to Increase Workforce Diversity in the Australian Library and Information Sector” the authors address this with the population of their own country, stating that “The concept of ‘diversity’ is therefore critical: the LIS - profession must acknowledge and respond to the diversity of society and a diversity of skills and expertise is required across the workforce to provide the rich diversity of library and information services enjoyed by the Australian population.” (Hallam et al., 2022, p.64) They realized that for the profession to be able to further diversity they must first acknowledge it through those who work there. Inside of the United States a 2016 report from the Department of Education states that, “a diverse campus leadership significantly contributes to cultural competencies, inclusive pedagogy, and fosters positive student interactions” (Sanchez-Rodriguez, 2021, pp.185-186). Fostering these relationships is an important tool to diversity in libraries as well as helping those who use them.
Though solutions to these issues are from upper library management, there are still other factors that contribute to the ability of a person of color to retain their position. When hiring the issues extend to personal and professional biases, “Within our library and information centers, biases can impact diversity efforts, recruiting, and retention, and unknowingly form an institution’s culture.” (Dalton & Villagran, 2018, p.478) These biases are ones that are already presented in a person’s personal beliefs, even without them acknowledging that they’re there. They don’t know that they exist without having to have training for them, as it’s easy for people to make judgments on others based on a few factors, a major one is a person’s appearance. “There are more than 150 cognitive biases with five that have direct impacts within the workplace: Affinity bias, Halo effect, Perception bias, Confirmation bias, and Group think.” (Dalton & Villagran, 2018, p.479) Each of these biases contribute to a specific impact towards any profession, but from the view of the library professionals just learning about them would help in stopping them. Let’s take a look at two of them which could affect how a person is seen when being interviewed for a position, affinity bias is one that is hard to ignore in any profession as it’s when you prefer those who look like you do. This will have a negative impact on diversifying the workplace as there will be times when the best candidate will look very different from yourself. Another is perception bias, as preconceived stereotypes or norms are made so that you cannot make an objective judgement on the person in question as you’ve already judged them based on what you believe to be true.
What can be done to help stop things like this from happening and help the library become more diversified? First it must be acknowledged that there is a problem within the training of the current staff, because while they may want a more diverse workplace, they must acknowledge the problems they already face. “All staff may have a responsibility to advance library priorities, but equity needs to be part of the institution’s operational practice on par with maintaining a collection or keeping the facilities running—and requires an individual accountable for it” (Peet, 2022, p.26). Even with aid there will still be problems when the norms of the institution are already set in their own ways even if they were unintentionally done,
“Even in an environment which is not overtly hostile, faculty of color often must deal with daily micro aggressions–those intentional or unintentional slights and snubs which denote racial and hidden biases and which also contribute to more feelings of isolation and loneliness. These feelings experienced by faculty of color should not be underestimated or minimized. Being the “only” or one of very few means not only feeling left out, excluded or minimized, it can also mean not always being accepted by one's peers or not feeling as though he or she “belongs.” (Riley-Reid, 2017, p.393)
For a person of color, biases and micro aggression can become an overwhelming factor in not staying at a job, even if it’s one that they have wanted for a long time. Hostile work environments can cause a lot of unwanted problems for a person. “Library administration needs to plan carefully in supporting colleagues, particularly those who have been historically marginalized and undervalued because of the rising violence against them.” (Pun & Kubo, 2022, p. 6) Without the support of administrators’ people of color could leave the jobs that they spent years in school in order to obtain.
The first steps in creating and retaining a diverse work environment start with the involvement of the Library Sciences/Studies programs working with other library professionals. These programs need to have pathways for students of color that will help them beyond their degree, “Residency programs offer wonderful opportunities for early career librarians from underrepresented groups to gain valuable experience working in academic libraries and help bridge the gaps in creating a more representative workforce. These programs, typically lasting two or three years, create a supportive environment for professional development, collaboration, and networking” (Pickens & Coren, 2017, p.105). If a student in the degree program has a way forward that would allow them to gain the experience needed to move forward in their career it would help foster their future. Mentorship programs with library staff or having them work within a library that is looking to diversify would help both the student and the library.
Find ways to make the environment less exclusionary, “If the normative expectations as prescribed by the library workplace is to distinguish between employee groups outside of necessary circumstances, then the potential for exclusion, intentional or not, and feelings of exclusion will exist.” (Petropoulos et al., 2022, p. 541) If the employee feels that they are being excluded both in and out of the workplace it may cause psychological developments associated with workplace satisfaction or personal psychological problems such as anxiety or depression. Library workers, not just Librarians, could feel this, it is not associated with one person, but if the person is the only person of color on the staff it may lead to them going elsewhere if they feel like they’re not a part of the team. “Academic libraries must create a climate that embraces diversity—a climate in which employees do not feel they must conform to the existing environment to be successful but are able to bring their authentic selves to the library daily and contribute positively to the success of the organization.” (Bailey, 2019, p.113) With this freedom it can help foster a better environment for all those who come into the library without having the expectations set by the past biases and exclusionary tactics that were once there.
Another important aspect of having a diverse library staff is that it helps foster a relationship between the library and the community it serves. If the community is within a college or university campus it will help the students feel as though they are represented and will help with library anxiety with the students. Pho and Masland’s article addressed it best by stating that,
“Diversity on college and university campuses allow for opportunities for students to learn from each other. Seeing diversity in faculty and staff is important on an academic campus because it communicates that the institution is inclusive. The employees who work in an institution have a capacity to impact it, not just by sitting behind a desk as a face, but by changing structures and culture and atmosphere behind the scenes. Changing user perceptions about librarians is a long process and isn’t solved with any quick answers. But having a diverse library workforce helps create an environment that is potentially more comfortable for a diverse community of patrons.” (Pho & Masland, 2014, p.258)
For students of color, having someone who looks like them is important to not feeling excluded while at college. College faculty, academic staff, and university staff are largely segregated in terms that those who work in fields that need post-secondary education are mostly white, while regular university staff are a mix of different diverse populations. For students, having diversity in something as integral as a librarian who will help them with their research throughout their studies would be beneficial in their future as it fosters feelings of not being seen.
What would support these changes in libraries is in creating diversity equity and inclusion programs for libraries, as this will create initiatives that would further the ability for libraries to become a more diverse place. Another way is creating pathways for library support staff to be able to move towards joining administrative or librarian positions. Sanchez-Rodriguez, wrote in that “Historically, marginalized individuals currently working in CUNY Library services are high-potential candidates for librarian positions, if provided with guidance from a mentor with similar lived experiences, professional development, and additional tools to pique an interest.” (Sanchez-Rodriguez, 2021, p.199) In doing this, libraries could create a plan to help those library workers move forward in the profession by creating a plan that would further the careers of those who work there. Sanchez-Rodriguez lays out a plan that would help those who work within their own library system to create a more diverse workforce that would serve one of the most diverse college communities in the United States, part of their plan includes creating a system-wide “mentoring program that would professional growth and advancement opportunities,” as well as “Exploring library leadership’s role in encouraging and stimulating informal mentoring relationships between faculty and staff (part-timers included), which builds lifelong connections.”(pp.199-200) These initiatives would be beneficial throughout all college campuses as a pathway for students from diverse backgrounds to learn more about professions within libraries, as they are a part of the library support staff.
We also need to remember that library workers have to support a community in not only representation but also in the collections they foster within the library, “as library workers, we’re in the information business, and when it comes to identifying ways in which we can better serve often marginalized populations, it’s always better to take a “more is more” approach.” (Gregory, 2022, p.31) Having materials that will serve the community is as important as having a diverse staff. Also, we need to remember that “Workplace diversity and inclusion is a very broad topic that covers many themes (for example, inclusive cultures, leadership, discrimination, unconscious bias) and groups (for example, women, men, people of color, veterans, people with disabilities, LGBT professionals).” (Grissom, 2018, p.243) It is not something that we can be pigeon hold into a single category, there are multiple communities that need representation, while also trying to be inclusionary for those in the community that they serve. This is a topic that would need extensive initiatives many of which need to start from the ground up, in urban cities it’s less likely to see a high school student working in a library whereas in rural communities it is more common. It’s those connections that help build up an interest in the field of library studies, as it will foster a love of the environment as well as an understanding of what is done in libraries. There is no way of knowing where this should start, but the end result is a more diverse library staff as well as a community that would be better helped by those who understand who they are without the preconceived stereotypes and biases that were built from the past.
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