Overview

Aboriginal and Visible Minority Librarians: Oral Histories from Canada, is a collection of chapters written by librarians of color in Canada writing about their experiences working in libraries. This book is not only for librarians in Canada and for those who aspire to become librarians, it is also for deans, directors, and faculty of libraries and library schools, managers and supervisors in libraries, human resources personnel, and other decision-makers in the field. It will also appeal to researchers interested in race relations, multiculturalism, intercultural communications and management, cross-cultural communications and management, cross-cultural studies, diversity, Aboriginal peoples, indigenous populations, and ethnic or visible minorities.   The majority of the chapters written by visible minority librarians come from those born outside of Canada. They speak of their love for their new country, its generosity and support towards newcomers and immigrants, and their reasons for taking up the library profession. While few of the librarians speak of open racism, they narrate their experiences as those filled with challenges, self-doubt and courage. Several of the Aboriginal librarians who contributed to this book have worked within tribal communities and tribal libraries. In spite of working within community environments, they have experienced challenges, especially related to lack of funding. These librarians speak of having to deal with tokenism, lack of mentorship, and working in professional isolation. Some of them narrate their challenges in working with colleagues who do not relate to them. Lack of support is common, as many organizations do not have proper strategies to deal with discrimination. However, these chapters end with a positive note of encouragement for future librarians; the authors encourage all librarians to be engaged, find trusted mentors, seek help when needed, focus on professional development, and find a niche in the organization.

Full Product Details

Author:   Deborah Lee ,  Mahalakshmi Kumaran
Publisher:   Rowman & Littlefield
Imprint:   Rowman & Littlefield
Dimensions:   Width: 15.40cm , Height: 1.60cm , Length: 22.70cm
Weight:   0.349kg
ISBN:  

9781442236813

ISBN 10:   1442236817
Pages:   252
Publication Date:   11 June 2014
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
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Table of Contents

Preface Dr. Lotsee Patterson Introduction Deborah Lee and Maha Kumaran Chapter 1: Building Libraries One Book At a Time Suzy Bear Chapter 2: Reflections on my Experience in Manitoba as a Visible Minority Librarian: A Personal Perspective and Review of Future Challenges for Visible Minority Librarians Dr. Ganga B. Dakshinamurti Chapter 3: Proud to be a Filipino Librarian Erie Maestro Chapter 4: Challenges and Successes of a Tribal College Librarian Mary Weasel Fat Chapter 5: From China to Canada: Experiences of a College Librarian in the Canadian Prairies Lillian Li Chapter 6: A Métis Librarian Autobiography Jim Bruce Chapter 7: The Toronto Public Library: A Personal Reflection on the 2010 Diversity Initiative Suzanne Fernando Chapter 8: Not a Mônîyâw Librarian Jessie Loyer Chapter 9: Diversity Pathways in Librarianship: Some of the Challenges Faced and Lessons learned as a Canadian-born Chinese Male Librarian Allan Cho Chapter 10: Observations of a New Immigrant Library Professional: Career Journey from India to Canada via the Netherlands Arvind Shrivatsava Chapter 11: Finding the Right Fit: An Aboriginal Librarian’s Quest at Library and Archives Canada Dale Blake Chapter 12: Becoming the Rhizome: Empowering Librarians and Archivists of Colour Kelly E. Lau Chapter 13: Indigenous Peoples’ New Canoe Camille Callison Chapter 14: A Minority Librarian’s Journey: Challenges and Issues along the Way Aditi Gupta Chapter 15: Academic Inquiries at an Aboriginal Reference Desk During Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s B.C. National Event Kim Lawson Chapter 16: The Immigrant Librarian: Challenges Big and Small Maha Kumaran Chapter 17: The Right Place at the Right Time: Synchronicity and Indigenous Librarianship Deborah Lee Chapter 18: From Recruitment to Tenure: A Reflection on Race and Culture in a Canadian Academic Library Nora Majekodunmi Index About the Contributors

Reviews

With this new edited collection, Kumaran (originally from India) and Lee have done a tremendous service to the profession in filling this gap. They present a mix of personal narrative, scholarship, and career advice that will both empower and encourage aspiring Aboriginal and visible minority librarians and enlighten Euro-Canadian professionals as to the struggles they face. In fact, the diverse pathways to satisfying careers offered here would be of value to any library school student or new professional, regardless of racial or ethnic background. . . .Aboriginal and Visible Minority Librarians is a significant milestone in the professional literature that should be required reading for all library professionals, administrators, and students, and rewards repeated reading. * Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research * I found these oral histories full of introspective insights into the Aboriginal and visible minority librarians' personal experiences and well worth reading. * Australian Library Journal * [T]his collection of thoughtful, personal narratives of 18 career librarians presents a clear overview of the challenges the aboriginal and visible minority librarian faces. They share their love of their chosen profession and are more interested in evolution than revolution, which gives impact to their narratives.... Editors Deborah Lee and Mahalakshmi Kumaran are founding members of the Visible Minority Librarians of Canada Network (ViMLoC) and must be commended for their foresight and dedication. They are among the 18 who shared experiences in this book. All look toward the future with a great deal of hope and a willingness to be part of the solution to the issues. * ELAN: Ex Libris Association Newsletter * A very insightful read! Peer reviewed, this book was a joy to read learning much from the various visible minority and Aboriginal librarians who share their experiences working in Canadian libraries. A must read for anyone interested in diversity and librarianship from an international point of view. -- Camila A. Alire, Dean Emerita, University of New Mexico Aboriginal and Visible Minority Librarians is a valuable contribution to our knowledge of what it means to be a minority in the field of librarianship in the US and Canada. Such a work is especially useful to the non-Native library world for enriching everyone's knowledge of a variety of cultures and backgrounds that contributors bring to their practice. The 18 chapters represent a spectrum of diverse voices among librarians practicing in a wide variety of library settings. Each chapter author describes the challenges and rewards of librarianship from a unique lens as minority library practitioner; contributor backgrounds include Filipino, Cree, Metis, Jamaican and more. This work will enhance every reader's perspective of the rich diversity and wide cultural participation in the library profession, while introducing them to individual practitioners who so generously share their stories. -- Mary Anne Hansen, professor and research & instruction librarian, Montana State University Library

A very insightful read! Peer reviewed, this book was a joy to read learning much from the various visible minority and Aboriginal librarians who share their experiences working in Canadian libraries. A must read for anyone interested in diversity and librarianship from an international point of view. -- Camila A. Alire, Dean Emerita, University of New Mexico

Author Information

Deborah Lee is of Cree, Mohawk, Métis and French ancestry. She was a reference librarian at the National Library of Canada and Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa/Gatineau for seven years. Lee was the Indigenous Studies Portal Librarian and team leader at the University of Saskatchewan Library in Saskatoon for four years but has been the Indigenous Studies Liaison and Aboriginal Engagement Librarian at the U of S since 2011. She would like to dedicate her chapter to her two adult children, Eric and Tara, her son-in-law, Jake, and twin grandchildren, Liam and Elizabeth. Maha Kumaran is the initiator, founding member, and co-moderator of the Visible Minority Librarians of Canada (ViMLoC) Network, a CLA Network. She works as a liaison librarian at the University of Saskatchewan. She is grateful to the support she has received from the University of Saskatchewan to pursue her research. She would like to thank the many librarians who have played a major role in shaping her career as a librarian. She would also like to thank members of ViMLoC for their support.

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