Politics of Libraries Conference – Registration Now Open

March 22, 2024

Registration is now open for the Politics of Libraries 2024 Speaker Series: Solidarity in GLAM Institutions!

This is a virtual conference taking place April 19 – May 24, 2024, on Fridays at 12pm MST.

• Registration Form

Visit the Politics of Libraries website for more information about the 2024 series!

If you have any questions about registration for the PoL Speaker series, please reach out to politicsoflibraries@gmail.com

Presentations and Speakers

Neuro-GLAM-erous: Big Tent Organizing with Neurodivergent GLAM Workers in Canada

April 19, 12-1pm (MT)

This talk will provide an overview of neurodiversity as a “big tent” concept, reflect on some rewards and challenges of organizing in neurodivergent spaces, and suggest some of the areas where neurodivergent workers deepen discussions in LIS. For example, neurodivergent and other disabled workers are well-placed to trouble discourses of expertise when it comes to medicalized identities. Autistic self-advocates have a long history of critiquing the “evidence-based” claims surrounding interventions such as applied behaviour analysis. Participants will also be asked to consider the place of trauma and emotional processing in the workplace, the “dilemma of disclosure” invariably faced by disabled workers, benefits and concerns around virtual organizing, and the implications of autistic and ADHD participants being the dominant voices in neurodivergent spaces today.

Ben Mitchell (he/they) is a neurodivergent Nova Scotian/British settler from rural Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia). They are a librarian, educator, and researcher with a background in the history of science and medicine and science and technology studies. They have been a curator involved in the public history of mental health and neurodivergence and have delivered talks and programming on topics related to neurodiversity, social justice, and information literacy. These talks have included being an invited speaker at the Waterloo Public Library, as part of Maskwacis Cultural College’s Microlearning Series, and as part of CAPAL’s Diversity & Equity Committee. They are also the organizer of the Neuro-GLAM-erous Discord server and annual conference for neurodivergent gallery, library, archives, and museum (GLAM) workers. Dr. Mitchell is currently the Campus Librarian at Thompson Rivers University’s Williams Lake Campus, in Sk’úl’e7ten (Williams Lake), B.C., the lands of the T’exelc within Secwepemcúl’ecw, the traditional and unceded territory of the Secwépemc.

Libraries and the surveillance economy: Raising voices for action

April 26, 12-1pm (MT)

Throughout history libraries of all types have and continue to play a critical role in educating communities through the dissemination of information to ensure an informed citizenry. However, the proliferation of digital technologies raises critical questions concerning the ability of libraries to educate citizens on data capitalism and hypervisibility in the era of surveillance. Digital media has taken over the legacy media due to its ability to provide real-time data concerning socio-political events. While digital technologies provide opportunities for digital activists to create content and monetise it for personal gain, on the other hand such platforms benefit data vendors or independent information professionals to make profit without the consent of the content providers. The question is “What should libraries do to educate libraries in dealing with data capitalism?” Since librarians are capable of withstanding technological hitches in their quest for survival, their epistemological and technical role cannot be underestimated.

Collence Takaingenhamo Chisita holds a PhD in Library and Information Science. He is a Research Fellow at the University of South Africa (UNISA) in the Department of Information Science in Pretoria, South Africa. He has authored 5 books, over 20 book chapters and more than 25 scholarly articles. He is the legatee of the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa (C2) rating for research excellence. He has navigated the globe as a presenter and contributed to LIS through webinars.

Oluwole Olumide Durodolu is a Research Fellow of the Department of Information Science at the University of South Africa. He holds a PhD in Library and Information Science from the University of Zululand in South Africa in 2016. A Certified Librarian of Nigeria and a member of the Association for Southern African Indexers and Bibliographers. Member Editorial Board, Maadili: Journal of African School of Governance and Policy Studies, South Africa, Covenant Journal of Library and Information Science and Member Editorial Board, Lagos Journal of Library and Information Science. He has published articles in local and international journals on information literacy, ICT4D, info metric, information communication technology, and more.

Alexander Madanha Rusero holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of Pretoria and is a Senior Lecturer of International Relations, Politics and Journalism with 17 years teaching and researching experience. He is a Research Fellow at the Africa Centre for HIV/AIDS Management at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. He is also the Head of the Department of International Relations and Diplomacy in the College of Social Sciences, Theology, Humanities and Education (CSSTHE) at Africa University in Zimbabwe.

Contradictions, Comparisons, Considerations: A qualitative analysis of social media and LIS

May 3, 12-1pm (MT)

How is our racial identity, as BIPOC in LIS, formed and expressed through our beliefs and practices in different knowledge institutions like libraries and social media? What do we feel safe to say and what is left unsaid? When faced with the consistent looming presence of white supremacy in both the infrastructure of LIS and of social media, what do we do to protect our peace and/or build solidarity? This research focuses on findings from interviews conducted in 2023 with a select few BIPOC students and alumni from graduate level LIS programs in Canada to attempt to answer these questions.

Luthfia Friskie (she/her and/or they/them) is a biracial settler living in Amiskwaciwâskahikan (colonially known as Edmonton, Alberta). She is a Master of Library and Information Studies and Digital Humanities candidate at the University of Alberta and a library worker passionate about information education, social media, justice, art and community.

Precarity, Solidarity, Professional Control and Structural Problems in Canadian Librarianship

May 10, 12-1pm (MT)

Canadian librarianship is a field beset by an interrelated set of structural problems. The field is divided into two castes of workers (“library technicians/assistants” and “professional librarians”) at both a professional and educational level. For MLIS holders, problems of precarious labour underpin the work environment, especially for recent graduates. Despite the field’s supposed commitment to intellectual freedom, the benefits of such freedoms are often not fully enjoyed by public library workers and non-academic library staff who lack the protections of academic freedom. In academic libraries the field’s “reprofessionalization” of the workforce is decentering library workers. Finally, while multiple Canadian library associations exist, there is no national voice to unify and advocate for library workers. Spurring these problems is the issue of professional control. Employers benefit from the surplus of potential workers (the reserve army of labour). Professional schools, which are accredited by a foreign body, are beholden to standards of accreditation divorced from the concerns of workers. And most significantly, workers have little control over the profession in terms of setting both professional standards and controlling entry into the field. As a potential solution a “college of librarians” and recasting of LIS education toward a unified undergraduate degree may be a valuable approach to address these structural problems.

Michael B. McNally (he/him) is a settler on Treaty 6 Territory/Metis Region 4, and an associate professor at the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta.