More information about the guide

From Neutrality is Hostility: The Impact of (False) Neutrality in Academic Librarianship.

Geographically MICA is located very close to where much of the protests were happening. MICA students, staff, and faculty participated in the Uprising in some way, including protesting, clean up and food drive efforts, writing and creating art in response. It was important for me to develop this guide as a way to frame research questions based around social issues.

As an example of how neutrality impacts the communities we serve and the profession, I’ll share this story: A librarian questioned my decision to create and publish this guide because it appeared that I was “pushing a political agenda.” In other words, betraying a false ideal of the neutral librarian. The act of putting together resources on a major event around the death of a young Black man at the hands of police and subsequent demonstrations in a predominantly Black city, within extremely close geographic location to the college at which I was a librarian, was viewed as agenda pushing. After a discussion and realizing he didn’t actually look at what was made available on the research guide, he seemed to understand the purpose. I appreciated him approaching me directly and that we could discuss it, but it has definitely made me more aware of the profession’s previous approaches (or lack thereof) to social justice efforts.