1. Librarian Misconceptions and the Effects on Race RelationsBy
Rosalind Moore

2. Overview
Librarian Stereotypes and historic affects on Diversity initiatives in the field.
Commonalities with Librarian stereotypes
History of the American Library Association (ALA) and their relationship with race.
Conclusion

3. Stereotypes
We give labels that serve to set images apart from ourselves. The labels are often times stereotypes. By creating stereotypes we set limits for ourselves and other groups which are classified as a “certain” type. Stereotypes affect us in different ways, especially the labels we have associated with specific professions.
For example, nurses are often times associated as a female profession and firefighters as male profession.
This picture signifies our society stereotypes of gender specific roles: Male Nurse as a soft “weak” teddy bear. This could equate male nurses as soft or weak and frumpy.

4. Stereotypes
Some of common Librarian stereotypes in society are the following:
Mean middle-aged “shushing” women with bun and glasses:
Frumpy nerdy female in mid-twenties:

5. “Sexy By Night Librarian”
Stereotypes
“Sexy By Night Librarian”

6. Stereotypes in Young Adult Literature
What is first exposure to librarians in Young Adult Literature?
Peresie and Alexander completed a literature review on a sample of 17 young adult fiction books from 1960s to There were great commonality in their findings: Research findings in the Literature review found:
76 percent of Librarians were women
All male Librarians were white male
There was one minority finding of an Asian Student Assistant
Physical description of male Librarian as weak or geeky in literature.
Personality of female librarian were of two extremes either “mean” “cold” or “timid” “shy” Librarian.
Ex: portrayal of evil mean spirited Librarian:

7. Personal Perceptions of Librarians
As an adolescent during my K – 12 years, I can not recall ever seeing any minority librarians in the school setting. I recalled visiting Public Library as a teenager and seeing very older gray haired black male working but was not sure if he was a librarian but assumed he was because of his age. I attended the University of Wisconsin – Green Bay and the only ethnic library staff presence were student workers throughout my four years of school. I never made any assumptions to why there was no ethnic diversity among library staff. I was accustomed to not seeing ethnic diversity in many academic fields growing up in Wisconsin. My early thoughts from images from TV and film that librarians were mean and lived miserable lives.

8. Personal Perceptions of Librarians
On TV I recall seeing episode of “Married with Children” the episode of the Librarian”

9. What is the commonality of all stereotypes?

10. White Female

11. Let’s take a historical look at the relationship of race relations in librarianship:

12. History of Libraries and Race
1936 – American Library Association (ALA)
- Wallace Van Jackson (Librarian and Activist) recalls blacks being allowed to attend ALA but in segregated sections and could not attend sessions where food was served.

13. History of Libraries and Race
Below is a book about a young black child’s story dealing with Jim Crow laws in a southern Library:

14. History of Libraries and Race Relations
1954- : Brown v. Board of
Education Supreme Court decision declares “separate but equal” facilities based solely on race unconstitutional.
ALA holds its first integrated annual conference in Miami Beach after years of avoiding the South as a meeting place due to racial segregation.
1960: The first library sit-in is held in Petersburg, Virginia, resulting in the arrest of 11 students for trespassing.
1962: In response to a number of library sit-ins, the Carnegie Library in Albany, Georgia, closes in August, but opens to blacks for the first time in March after 1,600 whites sign a petition asking the library to integrate its services.
1966: In Brown v. Louisiana, the U.S. Supreme Court rules that five African- American demonstrators arrested during a sit-in at the Audubon Regional Library in Clinton, Louisiana, should not be charged with disturbing the peace. It is the only library segregation case to be argued in the U.S. Supreme Court.

15. History of Libraries and Race Relations
How did the changes effect race relations with American Library Association?

16. 1979 the American Indian Library Association was established.
1970: The Black Caucus of the American Library Association was established. Founder E.J. Josey
The Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) was incorporated in Illinois in Current President Sandy Wee
1979 the American Indian Library Association was established.
1971 Reforma was established to promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and Spanish speaking. Current President Maria Kramer

17. Where are we now?
American Library Association over the years has sought out grants and scholarships to recruit ethnic groups into the library field.

18. What is the face of yesterday and today’s Librarians

19. Conclusion
Over the years the American Library Association has made great strides to recruit ethnic groups. Stereotypes that are projected in media, film, print ads, and literature does help detour people especially males in the profession. Stereotypes will always live on and it is our responsibility (new generation of librarians) get more active to establish a new face of librarianship.