Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Libraries As Pluralistic Public Spheres: Acknowledging Conflict To Promote Democratic Discourse, Lisa Engström

New Librarianship Symposia Series: Fall 2021

In library policies and library and information studies Habermas concept of public sphere is often used to highlight the public library as a place promoting democracy and inclusion by enabling interpersonal meetings between people with different lifestyles and background. Libraries are then conceived as accessible to all bridging social, economic, and cultural gaps, and promoting a perception of shared values between users (Aabø et al. 2010). I argue that vulnerable and excluded groups thereby may be hindered to form their own identity and to make their voices heard.

Accessibility and participation are core concepts when analysing libraries democratic potential. However, …

Librarians, Outreach And Evaluation: Edia In A Large Urban Public Library, Mariella Colon

New Librarianship Symposia Series: Fall 2021

Although we seek to be more universal in our offerings, libraries DEIA work still centers on simply event programming and collection development.

To talk about meaningful DEIA work today however is acknowledging that true advancement goes beyond events and artifacts. We must evolve this approach to where DEIA values drive our professional development through (1) critical librarianship (2) outreach and (3) responsive evaluation.

The framework for DEIA at a large urban library has three pillars of focus. The first is our librarians. It is important that we acknowledge the work that already exists because to start to review DEIA as …