Understanding the Experiences of Academic Librarians of Color

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative narrative analysis study was to examine the experiences of academic librarians of color with a goal of identifying contributing factors toward their decision to remain in or leave the profession. Five active academic librarians of color and five former practitioners were interviewed. Using Critical Race Theory as the theoretical framework, the participants’ counternarratives explore five themes: their personal experiences as academic librarians of color, including microaggressions and racism; the importance of connections; their experiences with the profession of academic librarianship, including with its professional culture, its workplace culture, and whiteness in the field; the work of diversity, equity, and inclusion, including recruitment, mentoring, and retention; and the solutions they offered to address their concerns. Recommendations include changing the approach to and content of graduate education in library and information sciences, hiring more people of color, providing mentoring, talking about race within the profession, and reexamining the core values of librarianship as espoused by the American Library Association.