Championing Trans Inclusion for Library Leaders
eLearning
Webinar
Throughout the country, libraries face an increasing backlash targeting everything from books and displays to programs and presenters to institutions and staff. Commentary has escalated to include misinformation, hate speech, and violent threats. These attacks are designed to enforce a chilling effect on library workers by dictating what is or isn’t “safe” to say, do, or be at work. The desire for safety can tempt administrators to avoid “controversy” by falling in line with demands, but this is not a viable tactic because the safety it promises is illusory. In the short term, it sacrifices the specific groups being targeted. In the long term, libraries are held hostage to further demands, eroding access for everyone.
One group currently being targeted is the transgender community; as a result, trans librarians face a uniquely hostile work environment. Yet their safety is often overlooked because bias, outdated protocols, and antagonism impact what support is available to them.
This webinar will examine the interlinked concepts of safety and support in libraries through a conversation between two librarians: a cisgender administrator offering perspectives on hiring and supporting trans employees, and a trans librarian giving insight into the daily experience of “working while trans” in a public library.