Why quiet-loving librarians can't shut up about politics - New York Post

Librarians used to be known for telling everyone to be quiet. Now they can’t seem to shut up. They have opinions on just about every political issue of our time. And they can’t wait to share them with the rest of us.

The week after the election, the American Library Association sent out a fairly anodyne press release: “We are ready to work with President-elect Trump, his transition team, incoming administration and members of Congress to bring more economic opportunity to all Americans and advance other goals we have in common.”

One might wonder why the ALA needs to work with the administration at all or what role they have in bringing economic opportunities to all Americans — beyond ensuring literacy — or what other goals the librarians and any presidential administration might have in common.

But the release would have passed without notice were it not for the fact that a ton of the ALA’s members were deeply offended.

Take a blogger called Librarian in Black, who wrote to the ALA president: “[Trump] has stood for racism, prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination for his entire life — including during his campaign. Those are all things ALA stands firmly against. Explain to me why we’re ready to work with a bigot? Because I’m not ready for that at all.”

So the ALA released a second statement, noting, “We are now hearing from our members and in the news media about incidents of bigotry and harassment within our communities. From children acting out in schools to adults participating in violent acts, it is clear that our nation is struggling in the wake of this election.” But fear not, the association is here to help: “ALA believes that the struggle against racism, prejudice, stereotyping and discrimination is central to our mission. We will continue to support efforts to abolish intolerance and cultural invisibility.”

Why librarians see it as central to their mission to abolish tolerance and cultural invisibility, I’m not sure. One might have thought their central goal was to promote reading and instill knowledge.

One might have thought their central goal was to promote reading and instill knowledge

Regardless, two days later, the ALA was back at it again, this time saying that libraries can work with the Trump administration to do things like help veterans, promote more broadband access and encourage entrepreneurship.

The librarians seem torn between their desire to show how useful they can be (presumably so they won’t lose public funding) and how disgusted they are by the people who get to vote on that funding.

So this week, Julie Todaro, president of the ALA, decided to rescind the original release. They even removed it from the website and have deleted almost all traces of it.

Now, in addition to getting mired in politics, the organization — which is presumably supposed to promote transparency and the open exchange of ideas — is now trying to rewrite its own history online.

Unfortunately, this politicization is in tune with the organization’s recent history.

Things started to go downhill in the wake of 9/11, when the library association opposed the Patriot Act.

At least superficially related to the role of libraries, the ALA announced it was against “any use of governmental power to suppress the free and open exchange of knowledge and information or to intimidate individuals exercising free inquiry.” Which also explains the ALA’s defense of the ability to access pornography on library computers.

In 2005, it called “for the withdrawal from Iraq of all US military forces and the return of full sovereignty to the people of Iraq.”

Why was this relevant to the ALA? Well, it wanted the US to help rebuild libraries there. Seems like a stretch. But the group has continued apace, most recently supporting Chelsea Manning and drafting a resolution commending WikiLeaks and Julian Assange for “performing a public service by making available important documents related to foreign and military policy.”

One reason for the constant stream of partisan statements from the ALA in the past 15 years may be that the political environment has become more polarized. But this period has also coincided with another important development — the rise of the Internet.

Now that we can buy cheap used books on Amazon, look at resources online through Google Books or other databases and access periodicals in the comfort of our own home, the role of librarians has shrunk considerably and many seem adrift.

As one recently told The Wall Street Journal: “If I didn’t spend my time helping people look for lost keys, wallets, jackets, sweaters, gloves, backpacks, cellphones and laptops, I’m not sure I’d even have a job.” Maybe the culprit behind all of these silly press releases is obvious: too much free time.

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