Unintentional recruiting for diversity

Based on interviews with Latino undergraduate students, Latino and Native American graduate students in library and information science, and Latino librarians, this paper documents some techniques librarians unintentionally use to persuade or dissuade students from becoming librarians. These techniques include developing relationships with library patrons, helping patrons become familiar with the library, demonstrating librarianship as a service profession, and demonstrating librarianship as a respectful profession. When used intentionally, those techniques become strategies which can help librarians recruit for future generations.Post-printIncludes bibliographical references

Latino students and the academic library: a primer for action

As the growth in Latino college enrollment is expected to continue for years to come, academic libraries at Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) and beyond will be serving increasing numbers of Hispanic students. Since Latino educational attainment remains lower than than of other groups and academic libraries’ impact on retention, GPA and related educational outcomes has been well documented, it is crucial that academic libraries actively foster Latino students’ success. A review of the literature on Hispanic students and library use, the article also includes recommendations for practice and offers a local example to illustrate strategies libraries may implement to better meet the educational needs of Hispanic students

Choosing to Make a Difference: Reflections on Mentoring Students

Reflecting on the journey of mentoring students for the past two decades yields one librarian’s insight about mentoring for career options and mentoring for vocation. The need for guidance exists among undergraduate students. Mentoring opportunities depend on the institutional support available. While research universities may at times support some career mentoring, Christian higher education affords a venue for vocational mentoring that is enriching for both mentor and students. It is meant to assist graduating students approach life from a Christian worldview that has been thought out through theological reflection on vocation

Critical Cataloguing and Contradiction Analysis: Using Mao Zedong’s Dialectical Materialism to Address Classificatory Antagonisms

This article pioneers the application of Marxist theory in the field of critical cataloguing. I take the recent Library of Congress ‘Illegal aliens’ controversy as a case study to demonstrate how dialectical materialism—specifically Mao Zedong’s contradiction analysis—can serve as a useful approach for addressing ruptures in classificatory language. I identify three advantages to using contradiction analysis in critical cataloguing research. First, by giving equal attention to all aspects of a phenomenon, contradiction analysis accounts for the inherently biased nature of library classification systems. Second, by insisting that all phenomena are in motion from one state towards another, contradiction analysis accommodates the fluid and contextual nature of language. Third, contradiction analysis is not limited to a single discipline—it can be effectively applied alongside a range of other approaches, such as feminist theory, queer theory, and critical race theory. My analysis reveals how dialectical materialism can be applied both retrospectively and in future critiques of classificatory antagonisms. I also call for an extension of the challenge to the language of undocumented migration beyond the realm of library classification and into the field of legal discourse

Latino Students’ Perceptions of the Academic Library

Library use is strongly linked with student persistence in higher education, and Latino students have lower rates of academic library use and proficiency than other racial/ethnic groups of students. This study explores Latino undergraduate students’ perceptions of the academic library and library staff and identifies the conditions which impede or facilitate the students’ use of the library. Using a multiple case study design, this study describes the experiences and perceptions of undergraduate students who identify as Latino and attend a four-year public research-intensive university in the Midwest. The findings suggest that Latino students use the library through the influence of peers, interpret the library as a space for cultural support based on their experiences with public libraries, and do not fully understand the range of resources and support available

A Holistic Approach for Inclusive Librarianship: Decentering Whiteness in Our Profession

This paper traces the published literature on whiteness in libraries, identifying major themes in that literature, and then highlights the importance of decentering whiteness for moving the information professions forward. Engaging a dialogic ethnographic methodology, this paper was borne of conversations between librarians of color who worked in the same predominantly white library. The salient themes from those dialogues were the many ways that adherence to whiteness in libraries has had deleterious affective and career implications for librarians of color. The authors argue that to decenter whiteness in libraries and other information centers, it is crucial to center the experiences and well-being of librarians of color; diversify the ranks of librarians through bold initiatives, significantly increasing the numbers of librarians of color; and make large-scale incisive structural change at organizational levels. The paper concludes with an invitation for all information professionals to participate in inclusiveness initiatives by moving from microaggressions to microaffections

Latino Reference Resources

The Hispanic and Latino presence in the US predates the existence of the US itself. Spanish exploration and colonization of North, Central, and South America in the sixteenth century began with the establishment of colonies in Puerto Rico in 1509. Florida, Texas, California, and the Southwest were regions of intense Spanish and (in Texas and further west) Mexican exploration, colonization, and cultivation throughout the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth centuries. As recently as 160 years ago, Texas was still part of Mexico; California and the entire Southwest comprised northernmost Mexico until 1848, when the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo ended hostilities in the Mexican American war. In that war, Mexico lost nearly half its territory, and that treaty guaranteed both US citizenship and retention of property rights to Mexicans living in the territory ceded to the US. As it worked out, however, many Mexican American landowners were dispossessed of their lands soon after the war and had to face other forms of discrimination. A generation later, the Mexican revolution (1910- 21) prompted emigration to the US, a flow that continues to the present day

Arizona Public Libraries Serving the Spanish-Speaking: Context for Changes

Arizona is at the forefront of Latino population growth and political and racial politics. Three different factors could potentially influence the provision of library service to Latinos in the State of Arizona. These are 1) the growth of the Latino community and the consequent growth of its library needs, 2) the growth of state legislation that is hostile to immigrants and Latinos, and 3) the promotion of a pro-immigrant position by the library profession. This paper compares services to the Spanish-speaking in the State of Arizona from 1999 to 2009 in light of conflicting pro- and anti-immigrant sentiments operating in the state during that decade.Post-printIncludes bibliographical references