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Does it help to be on "Friends of the Library" board? I too need to get a library card in my new locale and I won't move anywhere if there isn't a nice, big library there. In AZ funds have been cut, but so far, the libraries keep on purchasing the books I request , so I am happy, so far.
That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard/read. Of COURSE public libraries hire locally for the unskilled jobs. Libraries are desperate to involve the local community. Take a look at the pages, circ clerks, guards, etc. And take a look at the Boards, which are the "bosses" of libraries - they HAVE TO represent the local community.
Also, The ALA provides special full scholarships to Library Schools for people of "unrepresented populations" - a young local woman I HIRED as a cataloging assistant (low income family, mixed race) just got one of these scholarships. And YAY, now she's been accepted to one of the best library schools in the country! AND she'll be getting her degree on-line so it's even more affordable.
The issue is - Libraries face the same issues as schools when it comes to the populations they serve.
Who reads in America now? All surveys say - middle class White women are the primary readers in our country. Librarians work very very hard to provide services and materials that will inspire others to be information consumers. And the fact that this sometimes seems to be a losing battle really has less to do with race than it does with gender, age and class. Thank God for the rare and special individuals who, no matter what their background, love to learn - they are the ones who make our lives worthwhile.
Another major factor is that Library work pays badly. So people who have the oomph to try to move out of poorer circumstances might not choose it as a permanent occupation. And the computer specialists in libraries also get paid badly. If you have a choice between a high paying IT job in business or a "technology specialist" job in a public library, which are you going to pick?
Did you note that you don't see a lot of men working in the libraries?
What surveys say middle class white women are the primary readers in the country? Even if that were true, should you bar other demographics from the job simply because the majority are middle class white women? I guess that means it would be okay to exclude female sportscasters simply because mostly men watch sports? We should also exclude women from being car salesmen because men spend more money on cars, right?
Like I said before, I've gone into libraries where the majority of patrons were lower class people. Shouldn't the demographic of the patrons match the demographic of the workers? How would middle class white women feel if they wanted a job in a restaurant and someone said, "Lower class people eat this food more than middle class white women, so we don't hire them"? They'd be outraged.
My point is that people who don't read don't go to library school or apply to work in libraries. And people who come from a lower economic background may not apply to work in a library because library work pays so badly.
Wish they did! Libraries WANT to employ a diverse staff - who cares what someone's economic status is, an employer just wants the best possible staff. Sometimes there just isn't a pool of qualified applicants that reflects economic diversity.
People who work in libraries, by the nature of the work, have to have decent reading and math skills.
My point is that people who don't read don't go to library school or apply to work in libraries. And people who come from a lower economic background may not apply to work in a library because library work pays so badly.
Wish they did! Libraries WANT to employ a diverse staff - who cares what someone's economic status is, an employer just wants the best possible staff. Sometimes there just isn't a pool of qualified applicants that reflects economic diversity.
People who work in libraries, by the nature of the work, have to have decent reading and math skills.
Now it's my turn to say, "This is the stupidest thing I've heard/read."
Library school? I've never heard of that. I am positive most people in this country have never heard of it either. Are you telling me being a librarian is so difficult you need to go to a school for it? You can't learn everything on the job? Preposterous. All you need is high school reading and math skills.
If you have to go to school to become a librarian, then I'm sure it is to keep certain people out. Organizations often use school requirements to keep certain people out. You can get more useful experience becoming a manager at fast food or Starbucks. Why should people have to go to school to become a librarian? You'd be wasting money on a job with limited advancement and limited number of positions.
You're saying people in low economic status don't apply to libraries because of the low pay? It's got to be better than working behind a cash register, which is where many lower class people work.
The funny thing is, you're using all these excuses as to why the lower classes are excluded from library positions. These are the same excuses males used during the 60s and 70s when feminists asked why so few women were in white collar jobs. They said, "We WANT to employ a diverse staff but there aren't enough qualified female applicants. Few women apply. You need specific qualifications that most women don't have."
Now this excuse is used to give the reason why middle class white women hold most library positions at the exclusion at every one else. Now I see why many people say feminism was only created for the benefit of middle class white women.
Library school? I've never heard of that. I am positive most people in this country have never heard of it either. If you have to go to school to become a librarian, then I'm sure it is to keep certain people out.
OMG!!!!!!
Seriously, in 2013 someone wrote that?
Now I understand why you post as you do. So sad!!!!!
www.ala.org The American Library Association was founded in 1876 to professionalize libraries. The ALA has a long history of fighting segregation both in the nation as a whole and in the library profession itself. "In 1936, ALA voted not to meet in cities where black members would not receive treatment equitable to that of whites. Another landmark move was ALA's effort to desegregate state chapters by mandating that there should only be one chapter in each state."
There are subject specific library associations, regional library associations, and every state has professional library associations.
Each state has it's own laws regarding educational requirements for librarians. For example, the state of Michigan requires that all libraries that serve more than 25,000 people must have librarians with ALA certified masters degrees.
Here's a link to the Social Responsibilities group: http://www.ala.org/srrt/ "Concern for human and economic rights was an important element in the founding of SRRT and remains an urgent concern today. SRRT believes that libraries and librarians must recognize and help solve social problems and inequities in order to carry out their mandate to work for the common good and bolster democracy."
Here's a link to the Black Caucus: http://www.bcala.org/ If you go there you'll find links to subgroups such as the African American Male Librarians Association.
I encourage you to visit your local library to find out about current jobs, educational opportunities, and opportunities to join the Friends of the Library or to become a library Board Member.
Last edited by 601halfdozen0theother; 09-19-2013 at 08:44 AM..
If you have to go to school to become a librarian, then I'm sure it is to keep certain people out.
Yo ho ho!!! What happened, you get caught stealing books as a kid and the librarians were mean to you? 601 is much nicer than me...I encourage you to stay out of local libraries, you're one of those tedious patrons we have to escort out the door every now and then.
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