The Five Labours of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Anti-racism Work of Racialized Academic Librarians

Abstract

This study unpacks the experiences of academic librarians who identify as racialized, a concept that refers to actions and processes rather than an identity, to better understand the weight of equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism work. The themes that emerged from the interviews with the librarians were emotional labour, interpretive labour, identity labour, racialized labour, and aspirational labour. These forms of labour are often oversimplified, unacknowledged, or unquantifiable. For one line on a curriculum vitae, committee, advisory, or working group, equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism work may not be compensated or financially supported to reflect the intensity and expertise needed for the work. It is essential to unpack the complexity of the work to demonstrate how to better support racialized librarians who engage with this work that contributes to changes in the academic library and profession.