Guides can provide necessary and helpful information and resources, but the work does not stop at creating a guide. Fighting for racial justice and creating inclusive communities is a consistent, life-long journey that takes time, effort, and resources. Racism is pervasive and permeates all areas of society, including libraries. Libraries do not operate outside of society, and isms and phobias are inherent in the people who work within them and the very structures of our organizations. Lean into your discomfort. Fail forward.
Twanna Hodge
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Librarian
University of Florida
Resources that are overlooked or included to a lesser degree are:
As you identify resources, consider the resources that BIPOC may have access to and trust. Invite BIPOC to be contributing members, and think about the compensation, attribution (internally so that they are not harassed), and emotional labor that their participation entails.
Promoting inclusivity means inviting those most affected to be a member from the beginning.
By interrogating their ability to make all users feel welcome and understanding which users have not or currently do not feel welcome that could be due to misrepresentation, underrepresentation, censorship, erasure, and more.
Some suggestions are:
Inclusivity is everyone’s job. Understanding our identities and the power and privilege tied to them are crucial ongoing work that all employees need to be a part of.
Starting, continuing, and moving not only the conversation forward but to action needs resources, time, and effort. Your intention is necessary, but the impact is what ultimately matters.
Some suggestions are:
There will be ebbs and flows, moments of great successes, uncomfortable and, at times, painful situations, resource scarcity, and abundance in pursuing racial justice and inclusion. Engaging in self-critique and self-reflection are tools necessary for moving forward to healing and equity.
We’re so thankful to Twanna for dedicating her time and expertise for this piece. This page wouldn’t be “LibGuides Tricks” without a few guide and site tricks as well! :) To that end, we rounded up a few tips to pair with her advice and resources above — specifically ones related to promoting inclusivity and making guides welcome and usable for all.
Inclusivity Tip | Actionable LibGuides Trick |
---|---|
Speak their language |
|
Access for all |
|
Showcase media |
|
We hope our new spin on LibGuides Tricks has you looking at your guides in a new light with some helpful, insightful, actionable advice. And inspiration for how to effect more positive change as a librarian. Thanks for all you do for your coworkers, your patrons and students, and your community!