For my @uncsils master's paper, I wanted to understand if discriminatory experiences were happening to students of color within their library and information science masters' programs and how these instances could potentially affect their perceptions of the field. 1/13

I conducted a handful of qual interviews with BIPOC masters' students currently attending library school. I only conducted five interviews (I wanted to do more, so take what you will of this), but I hope that the results inspire + help folks wanting to continue this work.

Long story short, the answer is yes. There is already a lot of research on how BIPOC librarians routinely have to deal with stuff in their careers that white librarians do not: invalidation, paternalism, feelings of isolation, extra work to make their institution more diverse..

..microaggressions, etc. These instances lead to burn out. Even though there have been so many programs that help attract BIPOC to the profession (Spectrum Program, ARL Kaleidoscope), the numbers of non-white librarians have stayed relatively the same.

I think that these issues start in graduate school. BIPOC LIS grad students are already dealing with the same problematic and discriminatory issues that their counterparts see in the workplace.

BIPOC have to deal with isolation because there are barely any other students + faculty of color in their classrooms. Students were invalidated by their classmates and sometimes their professors, were made to do extra work to educate their peers and were not well

..supported by their institutions. Diversity initiatives were perceived as insincere or ineffective by students. Students felt like the problematic experiences they had in grad school were preparing them for the problematic experiences they felt bound to have in the workplace.

However, the students I talked to felt hopeful that the entire system was going to change and they wanted to help make that a reality. Many were inspired by their classmates and faculty of color.

My views:
1. LIS grad programs can be traumatizing + depleting for BIPOC students. Their identity & experiences are being both invalidated by microaggressions in the classroom, but then also valued when they get called upon to lead diversity initiatives, given scholarships, etc.

2. Inherent whiteness in LIS grad programs set the stage for the whiteness in the profession. Problematic instances in grad school prime and prepare BIPOC grad students for problematic instances in the workplace.

3. White colleagues, classmates, and professors are ill-equipped and uncomfortable when it comes to talking about race. LIS grad schools essentially "tiptoe" around inherently and historically problematic values and racist practices in the field.

My suggestion: burn it down!! not really, but kinda.. Essentially, libraries + LIS programs should own up to its historical and systematic practices that uphold white supremacy. Going forward, LIS pedagogy should be taught from a radical justice / CRT perspective.

My master's paper is online and available through the Carolina Digital Repository. https://cdr.lib.unc.edu/concern/masters_papers/j9602624z?locale=en.