ALA Presidential Programs

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Library Workers: Organize and Activate

Main Stage 

Sunday, January 29
8:30am - 9:45am

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Organizing and activism is in the foundation of libraries and library workers. We organize materials of all types for collections and archives. We organize people for programs and classes. We also organize ourselves for advocacy, fair wages, fair treatment, and more. At our best, we are frontline activists defending intellectual freedom, the right to read, and equal access to information for everyone in our communities. Hear from those who have made big change by working together to make a better world and are familiar with library workers organizing and advocating for themselves―from the National Associations of Librarians of Color to unionizing to starting a new Round Table―to better understand where we came from, how we got here, and where we can go next.

> Learn more about the panelists

> View in the LibLearnX Program

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Intersectional Justice in Libraries

ShopTalk 

Saturday, January 28
11:40am - 12:00pm

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What does a profession centered on justice look like? In this talk sponsored by ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada, speakers discuss how intersectionality can address systemic oppression and discrimination. The term, coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw, demonstrates how multiple social and cultural identities intersect and impact an individual's lived experience. Intersectionality examines how inequality based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, class, and other "isms" overlap to create overlapping layers of oppression. This session will define intersectionality, and how it relates to justice, and build a deeper understanding of how it can dismantle systemic, institutional, and structural disparities.

Learning Objectives:

• Attendees will be able to define intersectionality and see how a deep understanding of intersectionality can contribute to a more socially just profession.
   
• Attendees will be able to explain how overlapping social identities can create intersecting layers of oppression and impact the lived experiences of people.
   
• Attendees will be able to see how a deep understanding of intersectionality can contribute to a more socially just profession.

​​​​​Content Leader:  ALA President Lessa Kanani’opua Pelayo-Lozada 

> View in the LibLearnX Program

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Organizing for Change

Learning Lab 

Sunday, January 29
10:00am - 11:15am

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We all see things we’d like to change in our libraries, classrooms, and communities. But how does change happen? How do we make a difference? What has to happen for us to make the world we want? This workshop will introduce basic principles of organizing as a way to get things done. We'll begin with a discussion of power as something we can build and then explore strategies for bringing people together around a common goal. Participants will learn and practice organizing techniques, including organizing conversations, developing and assessing lists, and the elements of campaigns. Ready to change the world? Join us!

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the value of collective power for social change
   
• Conduct an organizing conversation in relation to a campaign goal
   
• Construct and assess organizing lists in relation to a campaign goal
   
• Share the principles of organizing with colleagues and community members

Facilitators:

• ALA President-Elect Emily Drabinski, CUNY Graduate Center
• Leah Richardson, George Washington University

> View in the LibLearnX Program