Feminists at Work: Organizational Leadership in Academic Libraries
ISBN: 978-1-83909-485-9, eISBN: 978-1-83909-484-2
Publication date: 17 August 2020
Abstract
Feminist leadership in libraries is an emerging area of interest. Distinct from traditional leadership or female leadership, it includes such values as critiquing systems of oppression, valuing whole people, empowering individuals, and sharing information. Here we ask, what do feminist academic library leaders do? And can academic libraries operate as sites of resistance to systems of oppression? We surveyed 55 people and conducted 23 semi-structured interviews with library leaders focusing on how they enact feminist values in the workplace. In this chapter, we explore several key themes that emerged through our research: how library leaders specifically advocate for their staff and users, how organizational structures support or resist feminist leadership, and how decision-making functions in their organizations. While there is no single way to be a feminist leader, we discuss the varied ways our participants enact their feminism, from day-to-day words and actions to larger initiatives and programs. As to whether these libraries are functioning as feminist organizations and able to resist or even change dominant oppressive systems of power, the results are unclear. The culture of the parent institutions seems to be a decisive factor in how academic libraries operate, and none of our participants report success at fully breaking away from those norms. Yet our participants also demonstrate how they have sidestepped or even changed official policies to be more inclusive and flexible. In this chapter we present clear examples of feminist values enacted in academic libraries as well as direction for further research.
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Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments
We offer many thanks to everyone who participated in our interviews and survey. Without your willingness to share your thoughts, feelings, practices, and time with us this research would not be possible. We are deeply thankful. Thanks to Mary Hallerduff for her encouragement and the gift of time to pursue this research, which resulted in her doing a large share of parenting and household labor. Thanks also to Jesse Mulert for his unconditional and unflappable support and encouragement throughout the research process.
Citation
Brook, F. and Hallerduff, M. (2020), "Feminists at Work: Organizational Leadership in Academic Libraries", Hines, S.S. and Ketchum, D.H. (Ed.) Critical Librarianship (Advances in Library Administration and Organization, Vol. 41), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 41-64. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0732-067120200000041004
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2020 Emerald Publishing Limited