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[library lyfe] I loved this piece on libraries and "vocational awe"
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"libraries cannot fix fucking everything, and if we’re being asked to fix everything, pay us appropriately."
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We've had the issue since re-opening where desperate people who need help with unemployment/other public assistance, finding shelters, etc. etc. are coming in and the librarians are severely underequipped to help them
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We had one social worker for the entire county-wide library system, she quit at the beginning of the pandemic, and they "haven't gotten any suitable applicants" for the position
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Christ. I'm so sorry that seems like a really heartbreaking task to have to undertake, like the social management at the same time with no one around to have otherwise been able to help in a "position" they should've filled urgently. Suitable is what lol
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It's been wild for me, since the pandemic hit, watching sentiments go from "libraries suck and are obsolete, get rid of them" to "oh, you all are so important, so we need you to open back up for public services" with a dash of "but make sure you don't make it look like you're wasting money or The Taxpayers will be upset"
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Yeah, I don't work directly with the public, but I know our librarians had to directly say "we need resources for this" before upper management thought to provide links to useful pages/forms
lucineblue
yeaaahh...
lucineblue
I feel this.
lucineblue
we're vitally important, especially to those struggling or below the poverty line.
lucineblue
but we also deal first hand with a lot of shit that makes me feel like maybe social workers should be on the payroll.
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This also makes me feel even more bitter about the amount of funding police get vs. libraries and social services
lucineblue
RIGHT.
lucineblue
tbh... I know this is maybe an over reach because I'm sure Canada has this issue too, but ah.
lucineblue
i remember someone onc saying that the issue with a lot of American stuff in terms of policy and even general attitudes is that... Americans want to be Heroes. Not Caregivers.
lucineblue
They want to save people! ... not prevent the thing that they'd need saving from.
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And that mixes with the attitude that anyone who ends up poor or in other bad circumstances did something to Deserve It and therefore isn't worthy of assistance
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And, like the article mentions, the attitude that we just don't love the job enough if we talk about how difficult it can be
lucineblue
fuck that. I love working at the library but it's goddamn rough.
lucineblue
there's a poor guy who comes in nearly every day who... isn't a bad person by any stretch, but he was in a car accident so he legit has brain damage. it's not his fault, but he's rough to deal with somtimes.
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Yeah, we have a lot of mentally ill people who are regulars, too
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Our administration's refusal to enforce the mask mandate has me worry for them, and for our elderly patrons who have been eagerly coming in just to see and speak to other human beings
ltmutiny
social workers should ABSOLUTELY be on library payrolls
Lel
I remember when I was getting my MLS, and there was a long discussion in my public libraries class over how library funding is in a cycle where when the economy is good people want to cut funding, and then everyone panics when the economy is bad and the local library is at risk of disappearing
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^ this
lucineblue
basically.
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We've seen that a bit with the pandemic, 'cause we took a huge hit to funding and had to furlough a bunch of people
lucineblue
it's like taking meds for a mental health thing. when you're feeling good you don't think you need them but that's because THE MEDS ARE WORKING.
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And re: social workers, yeah, we need multiple social workers. It's rough because frontline employees are very much expected to be able to handle all sorts of situations that are well outside the scope of their education and personal experiences
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Library = knowledge to a lot of people, and it doesn't occur to them that a lot of stuff is outside our personal wheelhouses, and we'll still do what we can to help but it's fucking hard to be expected to take on the burden of fixing everything then getting scolded when we can't
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Now I'm curious about Canada.
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I'm going to look into it, just out of that curiosity, but also slip back in here to give my support to the undying justice y'all do in that place.
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ltmutiny
I also had a thought about how like. we possibly internalize that vocational awe a little and go OH I NEED TO BE ABLE TO DO ALL THESE THINGS
ltmutiny
like. people expect librarians (and staff) to be many many things so library staff step up and then you look at other library staff stepping up and go OH I MUST ALSO STEP UP IF I AM TO BE A GOOD LIBRARY PERSON
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Agreed- I feel this especially happens if they're newer to the profession and/or they're serving marginalized communities
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"if I don't do this, who will?"
ltmutiny
I for SURE have had this feeling
ltmutiny
"i'm not sure it's absolutely my job to sit on the phone with this veteran without internet who wants to know a fuck ton of sports scores but nobody else is doing it so uh. it's my job now."
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We used to have an anonymous discussion forum and years ago an issue like that came up- that local businesses were telling people they needed to apply for jobs online, then added "oh, just go to the library and they'll help you"
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And it's like a person put it, "I'm happy to help people, it's my job to do these things, but we are also getting people who don't even have an e-mail account coming in to try and apply for jobs and I spend hours every day assisting them and I literally do not have time to do the rest of my job duties"
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It comes down to the understaffed thing- if one employee is having their time monopolized, that often leaves one other person at the desk to field everyone else
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And things like computer illiteracy are most certainly not the patron's fault, so... there's no real good answer here
ltmutiny
there really isn't