Our Defining Moment

To say that all of us have had a bad couple of weeks is an understatement. We've had to deal with the election of a man who not only wants to further the exploitation of the working class by deregulating and freeing up capital, but has unleashed the racist underbelly of the U.S. Then it got worst for myself and fellow librarians when our main professional organization, the American Library Association went  toe-stepping and complying with the new administration.

Others like Emily Drabinski and Sarah Houghton have illustrated their disgust with ALA position in a now infamous press release welcoming the opportunity to work Trump and his merry band of racists, neo-cons and conservatives. ALA apologized for the numerous drafts that still don't sit well with members and rightfully so.


Our world is unstable: the neoliberal promise of globalization has sent millions of workers around the world into lower wages and slave-like work conditions in developing nations. Products are no longer made in a single countries, creating  greater alienation of workers from the fruits of their labor (The Economist, 11/23/16).  Countries like England, and looking more and more like France, are seeking isolation in Nationalistic policies. Non-stop wars in the middle east for control of natural resources like oil continue.

In the U.S. workers have been disenfranchised from the promise of the American Dream and get consumed by debt and lower wages, increase health care costs, while banks and financial organizations get bailed out. The future administration's promise is to deregulate and tear down some of the institutions that were created to give every working class member a chance: public education, social services, employment services, work site safety etc. Reforms that weren't given to us but were fought for by movements against racial, sexist and more specifically class oppression.

But let's not kid ourselves. A Clinton administration would have brought just as much war and exploitation. They were the leaders in bringing neo-liberal practices around the world. While yes, they would seek to protect individual liberties, they work for some of the biggest capitalist in the world and their end game is about profit.

Libraries are (and will be) in the cross-hairs of every capitalist's who doesn't believe in funding
access to information that is critical to democracy. We are already seeing how they are really not interested in public education and would rather toss it to private corporations or start-ups that are impersonating as charter schools or online educational outlets.

Over the last several years we've seen click-bait attack articles about how public libraries are unnecessary because of the internet. The latest coming from Greta Van Sustren when she tweeted that universities should stop funding academic libraries because they are  "vanity projects"  because students have access to libraries are on our phones. I wonder why she didn't mention that they should also stop building million dollar gyms when students can basically go run outside?

The U.S. needs to retool its workforce and fast if it wants to compete against other countries. Libraries can be seen as centers for re-education which is great in a pragmatic sense so workers can go out and sell their labor and support their families. But which workers will benefit from the crumbs thrown to them by the new American order that has the Republicans in control of the three branches of government? History has shown us that the ruling elite will use racism and sexism to super exploit workers of color and women at the same time bringing down the wages of white working class men.

Libraries need to be centers that promote resources that promote democracy and discussion about how to fight for a better life for the majority and not a small minority. Libraries are a community's center of agreed ideas and dreams for a better future. In this light, librarians must define themselves as the fighters for information that promotes an open democratic society, released of the chains of oppressions. Yes, I know it's an ideal but we must fight for it.

Librarians have been perceived as one stereotype or another which I believe is evident in the press release; we're here to serve or assist you while pushing up our glasses on our nose and somehow be ignore all that disgusting racist and sexist baggage you're wearing on your lapel because of some bs idea of neutrality.

Thank you to all the have stood up because now more than ever we need to define ourselves as not the professionals who stood by but fought back.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving. Talk and struggle. We've got a world to win.