Thank you to the conference organizers who invited me here to speak to you today. I know that standing in front of an audience and self-deprecatingly confessing that “I’m not the right person to speak” can feel disingenuous, particularly from someone who is speaking to you from the privilege of being an invited guest. But…
Category: libraries
The Case for Normal, Natural Emotions in the Workplace
A few things I’m thinking about today: How often I see words or phrases like “positive energy” in library job descriptions How frequently I have heard the refrain “respectful workplace” used to squash critique The effect of forced positivity from library leaders on lower-level library workers and their trust in leadership A couple of things…
Thoughts on the Universality of the Black Experience
It took me three years to read Beloved. I tried on my own as a college sophomore but couldn’t handle it. It wasn’t until I took an African American Women’s Literature course, taught by the then president of the Toni Morrison Society1 that I was able to make it through. I was surrounded by my…
#L1S Tweetchat a Success
The inaugural First Generation Library Professionals chat went very well last night – much better than I expected. The biggest takeaway for me is that there is definitely a need among those of us who fall into this group to network and discuss issues around class, access, and navigating professional responsibilities. What I didn’t expect…
Looks like Monday is the preferred day for our Tweetchat, so let’s chat on Monday, June 1, at 5:00pm Pacific/8:00pm Eastern. We still need a hashtag, as #1GenLibProfs doesn’t exactly sing. Suggestions welcome!
First Generation Library Professionals Tweet Chat
“Survey says…!” (I’ve just dated myself with that reference, haven’t I? It looks like most of you thought a weekly tweet chat was the best way to stay in touch, so let’s get one started! First, we’ll need to settle on a day of the week. Because #libchat and #critlib both take place on Tuesday…