The following post is one in a regular series on issues of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility, compiled by a team of OCLC contributors.
Reclassifying for religious equity
The 2024 Public Library Association (PLA) Conference featured the program “Increase Religious Equity by Reclassifying Dewey 200’s,” which described how two public libraries implemented the optional arrangement of the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) 200 Religion Class. OCLC’s DDC Senior Editor Alex Kyrios explained that the standard arrangement uses the bulk of the 200s for Christianity topics (230-280), leaving the span 290-299 for other religions. The result is books about Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and other major religions are often shelved very close together with long numbers that do not fit on book spines. For example, Islam, the second largest religion by population, is classed in 297 in the standard arrangement while the optional arrangement uses 281-298. Librarian Emily McDonald from Lawrence Public Library (OCLC Symbol: KSA) in Lawrence, Kansas, described how her library implemented the optional arrangement and created a 220-299 Project Packet to help other libraries considering switching to the optional arrangement. Elizabeth McKinstry and Matthew Jaquith, two librarians at Springfield City Library (OCLC Symbol: WRS) in Springfield, Massachusetts, were inspired by a Tweet from the Lawrence Public Library to implement the optional arrangement in their library system.
This program was inspiring to me in multiple ways. It demonstrates how our profession improves cataloging practices in response to patrons’ needs. It is also a wonderful example of how librarians help each other to provide better service to users. The Lawrence Public Library’s project packet helped Springfield to complete its reclassification project, and the Springfield librarians have provided outreach to other New England public libraries about how they might implement the optional arrangement. Contributed by Kate James.
Book censorship in academic, public, and school libraries
On March 28, 2024, Ithaka S+R, the not-for-profit dedicated to “helping the academic community use digital technologies to preserve the scholarly record and to advance research and teaching in sustainable ways,” issued its research report on “Censorship and Academic Freedom in the Public University Library,” by Senior Analyst Ess Pokornowski and Vice President Roger C. Schonfeld. Interviewing five library leaders from U.S. states with restrictive DEI and gender-issue policies and five from states where such laws have been “tabled or defeated,” they found strong agreement on the goal of defending academic freedom within the context of their institutions of higher education. ALA’s American Libraries Direct for 3 April 2024, appropriately brought the Ithaka S+R report together with Kelly Jensen’s Book Riot roundup of “How Public Libraries Are Targeted Right Now—It’s Not ‘Just’ Books: Book Censorship News, March 29, 2024.” Former librarian Jensen particularly notes how censorship in school libraries tends to differ from that in public libraries.
Both the Pokornowski-Schonfeld research and the Jensen report contain reasons for optimism, but strongly argue against any complacency on the part of library communities. Because they are superficially similar types of organizations operating within dissimilar institutional and political contexts, school libraries, public libraries, and public university libraries face some different challenges, although there are certainly common threads. Perhaps the most obvious and ominous thread is that the challenges are not going away any time soon. Contributed by Jay Weitz.
Arlington Public Library’s Passport Program receives 2024 City Cultural Diversity Award
The City of Arlington, Texas has been honored with the 2024 Cultural Diversity Award for Arlington Public Library’s (OCLC Symbol: AR9) Passport Scholarship program. Presented by the National League of Cities, this award recognizes leadership in developing creative and effective programs that demonstrate quality and innovation in cultural diversity. The Passport Scholarship program was designed to help students in the Arlington community obtain their first passport, eliminating the initial hurdle for those eager to explore other cultures. The program is funded by the Otis and Rosie Brown Foundation and was launched in 2022 to align with the library’s goal of supporting learning and new experiences for residents. “By enriching their own lives, they will ultimately influence, shape, and edify the community they live in.”
As demand for U.S. passports remains high, and in times of reduced funding, many libraries are capitalizing on this need by serving as an official Passport Acceptance Facility (PAF) for the U.S. Department of State. American Libraries shares one library’s experience on running a passport acceptance facility, and the U.S. Department of State provides step by step instructions on becoming a Passport Acceptance Facility. Contributed by Jennifer Peterson.
Reparative Archival Description: The Past, Present, and Future
Yale University’s Reparative Archival Description (RAD) Working Group is hosting an 18 April virtual panel that is focused on reparative archival description, and how practices have evolved over the last five years. Speakers will focus on challenges and opportunities and are from a range of institutions, including Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan (OCLC Symbol: BEU), University of North Carolina (OCLC Symbol: NOC), Algoma University (OCLC Symbol: CNALU), UC Berkeley (OCLC Symbol: CUY), and Yale University (OCLC Symbol: YUS).
Because of the nature of archival description, (typically more voluminous and prose based than bibliographic description) there are special challenges inherent in identifying and remediating language used in finding aids and other modes of archival description, especially when those descriptive forms may have been written decades ago. In hosting online sessions like this, Yale’s RAD Working group is helping to contribute to a broad community of practice that continues to grow. Contributed by Merrilee Proffitt.
Merrilee Proffitt is Senior Manager for the OCLC RLP. She provides community development skills and expert support to institutions within the OCLC Research Library Partnership.
