Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Bias And Whiteness In Public Services, Annie Bélanger

Scholarly Papers and Articles

Race and gender bias intersect in particularly crucial way in Libraries as we experience them today with their roots in Victorian virtuous womanhood and an associated service ethic that requires library colleagues to prioritize user satisfaction even if at the cost of staff wellbeing, and at times, safety. This reality has led to an intertwining of identity, worth, and service ethic that is exacerbated through late stage capitalism that rewards business over impact and asks of us to want more.

On this basis, libraries have been ripe for critical review of our practices. As critical librarianship continues to grow, two …