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This chapter explores the historical and evolving relationship between human rights, social justice, and library support of these efforts through physical and digital access, as well as relevant legal frameworks.

We explore the connection between libraries, technology, human rights, and social justice. The human rights and social justice functions of libraries are descriptive of what libraries have become in the age of the Internet. Many aspects of the information and communication capabilities that are provided through Internet access have been leveraged to promote human rights and social justice throughout the world.

There is practical evidence through case studies and survey results that libraries have primarily embraced this direction through offering many individuals without Internet access or technology experience a place of physical access, education, and an ongoing atmosphere of inclusion and accessibility as society embraces an increasingly digital future. This focus on rights and justice exists within varying legal structures related to people with disabilities and to values of rights and justice. Many libraries have also created programs and services that are targeted toward online equity for people with disabilities. This proactive response regarding digital accessibility is indicative of the likelihood that there is an inclusive future for libraries and their services to the broadest of their communities.

Highlighting this role and a motto of access for all will enable libraries to expand their significant contributions to human rights and social justice that extend beyond the traditional physical infrastructure and space of libraries.

This chapter examines the depth to which considerations of diversity and inclusion have been internalized within the educational programs, professions, and institutions of library and information science.

Drawing upon the authors’ parallel careers as scholars and educators focused on the diversity and the inclusiveness of the field, this chapter uses the findings from their individual and collaborative studies over the past 10 years to explore the roles of diversity and inclusion in the field.

This chapter details a list of key issues of diversity and inclusion that remain insufficiently addressed in the field and the ways in which educators, professionals, and institutions can work together to confront these challenges.

This chapter traces the history of diversity and inclusion efforts at the College of Information Studies at the University of Maryland as an example of an institution that has made diversity and inclusion central to its activities.

By exploring the successes and failures of a program that identifies itself as activist in terms of diversity and inclusion, this chapter offers a portrait of the evolution of cutting edge diversity and inclusion efforts in the field.

Widespread changes to the diversity and inclusiveness of library and information science education, professions, and institutions depend on all parts of the field committing to these issues, sharing ideas and best practices, and becoming activists for equity.

While much discussion of information literacy in librarianship has focused on the educational roles that librarians play in promoting information literacy among the communities they serve, the information literacy education of librarians themselves has not received much attention. In response to an article written by the authors of this chapter, a surprisingly large number of librarians responded to them to try to contradict the assertions of their article using what was clearly disinformation. Drawing upon these attempts by librarians to spread misinformation in a professional context, this discussion explores the ways in which a lack of critical information literacy among information professionals can impact the ability of libraries and librarians to support their communities. This chapter also considers ways in which the librarians and library professional organizations could work to promote critical information literacy among current and future members of the profession.

This chapter introduces the role that libraries play in promoting and fostering human rights and social justice within the communities they serve. In describing this role, it highlights the different ways in which information intersects with human rights and social justice.

This chapter offers a brief review of the existing body of literature related to human rights and social justice in the field of library and information science (LIS). After articulating the need for this edited volume, we introduce the four sections in this book: Conceptualizing Libraries as Institutions of Human Rights and Social Justice; Library Services to Marginalized Populations; Human Rights and Social Justice Issues in LIS Professions; and Human Rights and Social Justice Issues in LIS Education.

The social roles and responsibilities of libraries have expanded greatly in recent years. These roles and responsibilities, however, are not often framed within the discourse of human rights or social justice. Together, the chapters in this book—written by researchers, educators, and professionals—paint a comprehensive picture of the broad range of roles and contributions of libraries in human rights and social justice.

This chapter introduces a book that explores the current efforts of libraries to meet a wide range of community needs (including education, employment, social services, civic participation, and digital inclusion) through the lenses of human rights and social justice.

This chapter summarizes the core human rights and social justice functions of libraries.

After reviewing how each chapter of this edited volume offers evidence of libraries’ clear contributions in the area of human rights and social justice, this chapter explores in greater detail how the current environment in which libraries operate impacts their ability to promote human rights and social justice.

In many communities, libraries are the only institution capable of fulfilling a wide array of social justice and human rights roles. As they seek to fulfill these roles, however, libraries face significant challenges related to the lack of emphasis on considerations of human rights and social justice within the pedagogy, research, and practice of our field.

This chapter serves as a call to action for library practitioners, educators, and researchers to better articulate the social justice and human rights roles of libraries to policy-makers, funders, politicians, and community members.

This chapter introduces the role that libraries have played in the struggle for equity and access for people with disabilities. It explores the historical evolution of the library and its service to patrons with disabilities and the significance that the now dominant role of the Internet and digital library resources hold in the realm of equal access to information and resources.

We introduce the three sections in this book beginning with libraries and their service and engagement of patrons with disabilities, continuing with a discussion of the accessibility of digital library resources, and concluding with a discussion of international laws and policies that relate to libraries and digital inclusion.

The Internet and related information and communication technologies have offered libraries around the world many new opportunities to support and extend their activities to support accessibility and inclusion of people with disabilities. The structure of this book and its case studies provide inspiration for libraries and librarians that seek to expand the inclusion of their libraries and the communities that they support.

This chapter introduces a book that is intended to provide best practices and innovative ideas to share amongst libraries, while publicizing the contributions of libraries in promoting social inclusion of and social justice for people with disabilities to those in the library community, and helping libraries to better articulate their contributions in these areas to disability groups, funders, policymakers, and other parts of their communities.

This chapter introduces the roles and challenges of diversity and inclusion in library and information science, as well as the goals and efforts to promote diversity and inclusion such as the James Partridge Outstanding African American Information Professional Award.

This chapter begins with a brief review of the issues of race and other forms of diversity in the field and the importance of addressing them. After articulating the need for this volume, the chapter introduces the sections of the book: The James Partridge Award and Other Efforts in Higher Education; Equitable Service to All; Toward a More Inclusive and Supportive Profession; Intersections of Race and Other Forms of Diversity; and Conclusions.

This chapter introduces a book that explores the historical and current issues related to diversity, inclusion, and equity in library and information science professions, professional organizations, institutions, education, and scholarship from a range of first-hand perspectives of winners of the James Partridge Award and other scholars and professionals.