In Brief This comprehensive review illuminates the current state of scholarly literature on trans and gender diverse inclusion in libraries, with the intention to provide a foundation and identify gaps for further research. Covering 50 works published between 2002 and 2023 in the areas of general inclusion, public libraries, academic libraries, experiences of library workers, archives, information behavior, and cataloging, we found that, with the exception of works on archives and cataloging, little scholarly literature goes beyond introductory talking points on basic information about trans a ..read more

In Brief: Although the academic libraries profession recognizes that retention is a complex and important issue, especially for advancing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and supporting BIPOC librarians, the library literature largely avoids defining or providing a measurement for retention at all. In this paper we propose an original nuanced definition of retention. We draw from existing research on workplace dynamics and library culture and our qualitative exploration of academic librarians who have left jobs before they intended. Our research investigated what it was like ..read more

In Brief: Despite a growing pool of research in library and information science (LIS) authored by autistic librarians (see Lawrence, 2013; Tumlin, 2019),  the vast majority of LIS research about autistic students in academic libraries continues to portray autism as a tragedy that students must overcome, a common trope that the autistic community has long rallied against (Sinclair, 1993). In this article, I recommend that those writing about autistic students and academic libraries do so through a neurodiversity lens; those who ascribe to the neurodiversity paradigm generally conceive of ..read more

In Brief Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) are essential to the preservation of intellectual freedom (American Library Association). Yet some Library and Information Science scholars argue that EDI work within libraries is not evolving significantly or rapidly enough. Using our work in building the Diverse BookFinder Community of Practice as an example, we highlight overarching principles that can guide EDI professional development towards greater effectiveness and sustainability. Sharing concrete strategies and examples of how to keep community and the community’s shared purpose at the ..read more

by Natalia Fernández, Jane Nichols, and Diana Park In Brief  Conversations about the memorial landscape, as well as commemorative and toponymic naming practices, have exploded across universities in the United States in the past few years. Toponyms, or place names, which situate a location in its historical, social, and demographic context, are reconsidered during efforts to establish toponymic justice, a re-naming lens arising out of critical place-name studies (Rose-Redwood, Alderman, and Azaryahu 2010, p. 453, 455). We outline how toponymic justice can be enacted in library spaces by ..read more

By Lorelei Rutledge, Erika Church, and Devan Church Image: “As I Am”. Mixed media on paper. By Melissa L. Gygi. (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)In Brief In her 2020 memoir, activist Aubrey Gordon describes the frequent cruelty she experiences because of her body shape and size, explaining that “there is a minefield of abuse reserved for the very fat. I have come to view the world through the prism of that abuse, negotiating my days around reducing it.”1 Gordon’s experience is only one example of coping with fat phobia or weight bias. Weight bias is defined as “negative attitudes toward individuals who are p ..read more

By Nikki Andersen  In Brief Through autoethnographic reflection and examination of theoretical literature, this article explores my experiences of disability while working in the academic library and information science (LIS) field. Most of the current literature on disability and librarianship focuses on serving students or patrons with disabilities, whereas the experiences of being a disabled library worker are less explored. The article examines the reality of working in the LIS profession with a hidden sensory and physical disability. It explores the cognitive cost of working with a ..read more

In Brief This article will review the processes that two student success and engagement librarians undertook in order to embed social justice tenets into their management of peer consulting/teaching programs at two different institutions. While there has been much discussion of the reasons for and ways to implement peer consulting/teaching programs, less focus has been given to how to operate such programs from a place of equity and care. This is why two managing librarians worked collaboratively with student workers to embed social justice theories into a new and already existing peer consult ..read more

In Brief The purpose of this article is to center the experiences of librarians of color in academic libraries through a discussion of microaggressions and pandemic experiences of racial exclusion. Design/methodology/approach. It draws on a synthesis of the literature of microaggressions and the psychology of perspective taking to introduce a method to encourage empathy for the experiences of librarians of color.  Findings. Employing empathy encourages connections between people and recognition of the experiences of racism for librarians of color, both overt and latent. These can be brou ..read more

By Anna White  In Brief There has been more literature about academic librarians saying ‘no’ in the last decade than in previous time periods. However, much of the existing work discusses how academic librarians might say ‘no’ to optional activities, such as serving on an extra committee or taking on an additional research project. As budgets and staffing levels decrease but expectations and responsibilities increase, academic librarians may find themselves in the position of needing to say ‘no’ even to regular duties: this paper presents a review of the literature on when, why, and how ..read more