Why Librarians Really Are Heroes...

I’ve spent time writing about librarians’ “quests”, and ethical concerns of librarians.  And most of the time when I compare librarians to heroes, it’s tongue in cheek.  I spent four years in undergrad studying comparative mythology with a personal focus on hero myths, so it is on my mind a lot and it is easy for me to draw parallels between just about anything and heroism.  But I think sometimes I start thinking it is a joke.  And now I’ve been reminded about why librarians are heroic:

Librarians stand up for what they believe in.  Most recently, the Connecticut Four Librarians are what bring this to mind, but I have more than one example.

Connecticut Four Librarians

Library patrons aren’t always comfortable discussing what they’re reading or researching, and there are many reasons for this – personal, professional, who cares?  It’s not the librarian’s job to judge them or make them feel judged in any way.  But when the FBI demands that a patron’s records be surrendered and this can be done without an Order…well, it is in the name of protecting the country.  But is it fair?  

The Connecticut Four Librarians opposed the Patriot Act to protect the rights of patrons and libraries throughout the U.S.   The quiet bravery of these librarians really reminds me of why librarians have earned so much respect.  The four went up against the FBI to protect the rights of their patrons-- in particular, their right to privacy.  Due to gag orders, they couldn’t draw attention to what the government was doing and were forced to go about this all as “John Does”.  

Librarians with Tattoos

Yup.  Tattooed librarians are a thing.  We don’t all wear buns, glasses, and Peter Pan collars.  It may not sound heroic on the surface, but the movement and groups forming about tattooed librarians aren’t just about the tattoos.  They’re about evolution and stereotypes.  We can’t all be the stereotypical librarian anymore because our field has expanded so far and so quickly—and will continue to do so—so we need to be more than that sweet old lady who goes “shhh” from behind the counter.  The librarians with tattoos are the trailblazers for the new world of libraries: technology, information from all sources, and no judgement.  All are welcome, majority, minority, it matters not. 

Censorship

So you’re not convinced that librarians are heroes yet?  That’s okay, I get it.  Some people take more convincing.  How about the fact that every year ALA celebrates a banned book week to draw attention to the fact that across the country groups are trying to ban books?  The ALA has been actively opposing this for decades.  Once again, Librarians are out there protecting the rights of citizens (specifically the First Amendment in this case).  In fact, the Freedom to Read Foundation (“Free people read freely!”), affiliated with the ALA, is dedicated to providing legal and financial support to defend intellectual freedom since 1969. Some librarians have lost their job and community by standing up for our right to read.  Have you thanked a librarian yet taking on the factions who think you should only be allowed to read what they think you should read?  If it weren’t for them, we could say goodbye to J.K. Rowling, Judy Blume, Maya Angelou… and the list goes on. 

I’m not going to continue on expounding why librarians are the quiet heroes of our modern world (who needs Theseus and Samson when we have John Does and the ALA), but I really do think our librarians deserve recognition for always doing what is right, even when it’s not the easy thing to do.

Libraries, Lawyers, and Ethics, Oh My!

Law libraries, not surprisingly given their ties to both libraries and law, are subject to a code of ethics. 

The American Association of Law Libraries (“AALL”) last rewrote the code of ethics in 1999.  Sections of the code include: Service, Business Relationships, and Professional Responsibilities (1).

The American Library Association (“ALA”) focuses on service, censorship, users’ privacy, intellectual property rights, employee welfare, fostering non-biased environments, and enhancing knowledge.  This code was first adopted in 1939, and last amended in 2008 (2).

The American Bar Association (“ABA”) literally has an entire book on Model Rules of Professional Conduct, having evolved past the 1908 Canons of Professional Ethics.  Needless to say, it is much more detailed than the codes available through AALL and ALA, covering everything from ethics with clients, other persons, the public, firms, counselors, etc. (3).

At this point, you’re probably wondering if I’m off my rocker and why I’m writing about ethics right now.  Honestly, I’m just curious.  I was thinking about how libraries and librarians work so hard to make information readily available for patrons.  That, in turn, led me to thinking about how attorneys have to do the exact opposite.  You can probably see where this path is headed…right to the intersection of “law” and “library”.

Of course, the ethics are different in some ways depending on the type of law library one ends up in.  I couldn’t help but think that if I were in a public law library, I would be actively working with patrons to give them access to legal information and direct them to legal help when necessary (because, as the AALL code of ethics points out, we’re not authorized to practice law). 

As a librarian in a private firm, though, my concerns lean more towards finding information efficiently, limiting the yield of searches due to time constraints, and maintaining vendor relationships with what sometimes feels like hundreds of thousands of vendors.  My ethics sometimes feel as though they are by necessity leaning more in the way of the ethics proposed by the ABA as opposed to the ALA.  That being said, the firm I work at strongly encourages me to enhance my knowledge and I frequently participate in webinars and training sessions, which seems to be a trait of both the ABA and ALA codes.

All of this ends with my query: how are ethics emphasized at different law libraries, and which code do they tend towards? (I know, I should be answering questions, not asking them...)