[Libs-Or] You Work for the Public; Your Thoughts Aren’t Sacred

[EveryLibrary Institute]

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Join The Political Librarian for an "In Conversation" webinar series that brings together some of the authors featured in the Political Librarian Special Issue <https://journals.library.wustl.edu/pollib/> to examine how Executive Orders and political narratives are reshaping DEI, public memory, free speech, labor, and professional ethics in the GLAM fields. 

February 2 at 1pm EST

Based on the article: You Work for the Public; Your Thoughts Aren’t Sacred <https://journals.library.wustl.edu/pollib/article/id/9097/>

Too often, anti‑DEI arguments claim that librarians and public workers deserve a special sphere of protected “thought privacy,” where belief can be separated from professional obligation, and that equity efforts violate it.Dr. John Mack Freeman, Assistant Dean for Interdisciplinary Initiatives and Director of the Clough Undergraduate Learning Commons at the Georgia Tech Library, challenges this premise head‑on in his new Political Librarian article, arguing that librarians are public servants whose responsibilities extend beyond personal ideology.

Drawing on legal history, workplace ethics, and years of professional experience, Freeman rejects the idea that DEI initiatives are coercive or censorious. Instead, he shows how accountability, transparency, and equitable labor practices are central to public trust and public funding. This session will help attendees understand how “neutrality” and intellectual distance arguments are being used as political tools, and what a professional, ethical, and democratic response looks like.

Facebook Live: https://www.facebook.com/events/2548559422191032

YouTube Live: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqyydgUSmMA

You can also view previous sessions and RSVP for all of our webinars in this series here <https://www.everylibraryinstitute.org/tpl_webinars_weaponized_politics_dismantled_policies>.

EveryLibrary Institute
https://www.everylibrary.org/



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