A re-evaluation of participation
So, I made a decision at the start of this class concerning my participation. My decision began with mentioning and linking to my social justice blog. I know we’ve had some chats about doing things online that you wish you could take back… But this is only partially that situation. Ultimately, I think it was a valuable experiment. It was a good reminder for me not to mention social justice in class (or, really, in real life).
As we discussed participation in social media this past week it became increasingly clear that the internet, contrary to what most people think, a direct reflection of reality. Well… I think the better way to understand it is as an extension of reality. There is no demarcation between online and in-person communities — communities of any kind exist in the imagination of human beings.
And in these imagined communities (quite real for all their social construction) the systematic exclusion and erasure of people of colour, neuro-divergent people, trans people, gender non-conforming people, queers, bisexuals, differently abled, etc., is a fact of life. I’ve known this my entire life. I’ve also known that my participation in these communities is always contingent on my buying into how these communities are constructed. Meaning that I must accept being excluded or, when included, erased.
Trying to change this reality, by attempting to truly participate, comes at a high emotional cost. One I’m not willing to pay for the sake of 3 credits in school. So, I give up and cede the field. From now on, my participation in social media (within the confines of this class) will be sanitized. I’ve played this game for 9 years (in terms of going to school) and I’ll keep playing it for this last year, because I have my eye on the prize: graduating and succeeding in this field. For, while I’m deciding to maintain my biyuti, I have every intention of not only changing the information profession, but the world.
So, “farewell, Activist Abe” and “hello, Student Abraham.”
I was an activist in library school. I felt it was important to give voice to the disenfranchised and to locate myself, in Paolo Freire’s words, in a space of conscientization (agency).
At about age 32, when I became the UBC Biomedical librarian, I did a 360 degree turn and decided that what I needed to do was speak to fairness and equity generally. I also turned almost completely in 1999 to helping SLAIS students. Twas ever thus.
I see some of myself in you. Idealistic. Driven. Remember to be kind to yourself (because, as my mum used to tell me, no one else will).
I hope you feel confident to speak to social justice with me. I welcome it.
I just realized that I never replied to your comment!
That sort of path is exactly why I’m focused on the long game… I’m gonna infiltrate a library organization with one clear goal: take it over. I recently realized that if I wanna work in the kind of library that is truly diverse, etc., I’m probably just gonna have to have my own library! So, I’m looking at becoming a library director eventually. It is either that or maintain a complete separation between my professional and personal life — which is exhausting and exactly the sort of thing I’m going to change.
Thanks, too, for the comment of being kind to myself. I’ll remember and try.
I really appreciated your discussion comments Abraham and I do think that they are important, and I am sure that others in the course felt similarly. I do hope that your further experiences in class are not that of exclusion nor erasure.
Also, I can empathize with the experience of feeling taxed by others ignorance regarding race/class/gender/sex/radical politics issues. I try and tell myself to be patient and do my best to explain ideas/concepts/lifestyles/political-views/other-forms-of-existence-or-realities to people who have never encountered or thought about them before. Thanks for speaking as an activist, dialogue and discussion will always be a good thing 🙂
I really appreciate your support! I think I’m gonna let my comments stand and take a step back. Just gotta remember that this is a war of attrition and to conserve my energies.
Although, I’m sure there’ll be times when I just won’t be able not to say something. Although, I think, in the future I just may drop links to the appropriate resources, very librarian of me, and let people educate themselves (if they so choose).