2017 MLA Annual Conference

At last count, the profession of librarianship was comprised of only 12% people of color, despite numerous diversity initiatives in recruitment. This state of affairs was aptly described by local author & activist, Andrea Jenkins, as "blindingly white." Director of MIT Libraries, Chris Bourg, poignantly described our profession's diversity problem as "the unbearable whiteness of librarianship." A framework already exists that allows us to critically evaluate our practices and cultivate more inclusive libraries. We will look at librarianship through the lens of critical race theory to advance the discussion about race, de-center whiteness, and bring theory to a practice of anti-racist librarianship. After presenting some guiding principles, a theoretical framework, and some inspiring examples, we will lead a critical discussion with the audience so that together, we can create a call to action(s).