Week 3 Reading Response

The article "Unequal Legacies: Race and Multiculturalism in the LIS Curriculum" by Christine Pawley was fascinating to me for several reasons. First, and probably least importantly, I found her division of the profession of librarians into four categories interesting and helpful because for me it clarified categories of librarianship that I subconsciously was aware of, but hadn't overtly thought about. More importantly, however, Pawley's article brought to my attention issues of race in librarianship that I wasn't previously aware of.

As a history major, I took classes which covered racism both as it occurred in U.S. history and as it relates to the study of history itself. I was aware that the study of history has, until recently, been dominated by white males, which has been reflected in how history has been told over time. It hadn't occurred to me until I read Pawley's article that libraries, in how they relate to different elements of a society, have been subject to the same circumstances.

Awareness, I think, is the first step in combating the issues of racism in librarianship. If people aren't aware of the problem, they can't find solutions to it. Pawley is correct in her assessment that this awareness must begin during LIS education, if not earlier. As a first year student only a few weeks into the semester, I cannot accurately assess how UW-Madison's LIS program addresses issues of racism, but I believe that if not already the case, every course in the LIS curriculum can and should include information on this issue.

Specifically what I found interesting about Pawley's discussion of racism in librarianship is her discussion of the use of the term "services to," indicating that librarians are in possession of a greater amount knowledge or ability than the people they serve, especially racial and other minorities. I think it is important for librarians and LIS studies students to keep a balanced view of their role of helping people find information and be careful not to adopt a "missionary" outlook of their services.