Law Librarians Improving the Profession

Image from AALL Twitter
During Bryan Stevenson's keynote at AALL in Austin (login req'd), he noted and expounded on 4 things that will improve justice:
  1. Get proximate to injustice
  2. Change the narratives that sustain injustice
  3. Stay hopeful
  4. Do uncomfortable things
His message is an important one, and law librarians certainly have a role to play in improving access to justice. 

Throughout his keynote, I couldn't help but connect these 4 things to the issues facing law librarianship, in general. Like improving justice, law librarians need to work to improve the state of our profession to ensure that we can continue to assist with access to justice issues, among other things, for years to come. 

In that regard, we can do similar things to improve law librarianship: 

     1. Get proximate to the issues facing law librarianship

There is a myriad of issues facing law librarianship: budgets, staffing, librarian supporttechnology, public perception. We need to face each of these head on and work to create solutions. 

     2. Change the narratives that sustain the misunderstandings re: law librarianship

Lately, it seems that we need a wide array of elevator speeches to explain our importance. It's tough to constantly explain in a clear, meaningful way when our importance seems so obvious to us. But it's necessary. I will forever regret letting a faculty member confidently tell me that the only thing that the law library needs is a subscription to Westlaw & Lexis. Law librarians know that there are pedagogical concerns, licensing issues, and many other things wrong with that statement. On this day, I let the comment pass with no retort because I was exhausted from a long day in the office and didn't feel like engaging in the discussion. But we must engage in these discussions. We must advocate for the profession.

     3. Stay hopeful

After attending AALL and talking with other law librarians about our work, it is clear that we are all very busy. And when we get too busy by being asked to do more with less, coupled with feeling underappreciated, it's easy to lose hope. I love this profession, and I, for one, need to do a better job of remembering the intrinsic value of law libraries

     4. Do uncomfortable things

We can't sit still; we must engage. And that's inherently uncomfortable given our responsibilities. 

One of the best things about AALL is meeting all of the wonderful people in the profession and feeling re-energized about tackling these issues. Let's use the momentum until we meet again next summer in Baltimore (with John Waters!). 

Comments

  1. Changing the narratives on law librarianship: Let's "show" rather than "tell" or discuss. Plus I add that as individuals working in law, don't we believe in the rule of law and desire to promote justice? Our individual actions as citizens are as valuable as our actions as employees.

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  2. I absolutely agree that showing is important. But I find that telling is just as important. Many folks are under the mistaken perception that law libraries are no longer needed, and that's just not the case. It's especially egregious given that we "show" so much value. So we must also make discuss and help others make connections.

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  3. The value of law libraries extends beyond practitioners in the legal profession. In increasing access to justice, users will include the layman and other professions (particularly as technology increases access). Although a lawyer may think he or she needs no more than a copy of Lexis, other stakeholders will need a far greater variety of material. There is a definite need to curate beyond leaving that task to a commercial enterprise. Otherwise, our knowledge lessens rather than grows.

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