Ways Forward?
Sarah Ahmed reminds us that "You might be free to say no but your no is heard as destructive; hearings have consequences (becoming a killjoy is a consequence) . . . . And then no becomes judged not only as how you stop others from doing something, but how you stop yourself from being something . . . They might not stop you from saying no but they make it costly for you to say no. " (Ahmed, 2017)
She cautions that "You need more than a right to say no for no to be effective." She warns that "If your position is precarious you might not be able to afford no. You might say yes if you cannot afford to say no, which means you can say yes whilst disagreeing with something. " She implores us that "This is why the less precarious might have a political obligation to say no on behalf of or alongside those who are more precarious." (Ahmed, 2017)
That's why we created a genealogy of workplace refusal, because by talking about such a thing, by learning together how to read the story of refusal, we can have a common narrative, a common acceptance of the language of "No" that allows us to examine the dead-ends and false turns workplace responses to crisis narratives can take. We can instead write and think and negotiate other ways forward that are informed by our fictional, feminist,racist, labor and abundant past.
Debunking and taking a second look at Ways forward?
Negotiation
Peña McCook, Kathleen de la. 2010. “Unions in Public and Academic Libraries.” https://doi.org/10.1081/E-ELIS3-120043805.
the thing i s awesome
Reframing the conversation
Shelley. Last Library. 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NwVtvfUPMg4.
Saying "No" can be difficult-- there are ways to structure responses to inappropriate expectations that reclaim autonomy:
- To questions of "can you take on this new project?" -- "Yes, but I will need your help prioritizing my responsibilities and removing any tasks."
- Or, "I can, but I will need resources A, B, and C," or "I would need the support of collaborator X, Y, and Z."
Credentialing? Professional Gatekeeping (remember Popowhich? ) when we change the profession or bifurcate the role just so others can get paid more whose interests do we serve?
Guys keep moving the bar - the european movement to professionalize FAIR data stewardship is a way of saying “your MLS isn’t good enough” do this other stuff our way for free or we will use them(our postdocs/grad students/favorites) instead of you . . .
Buschman, John. 2003. Dismantling the Public Sphere : Situating and Sustaining Librarianship in the Age of the New Public Philosophy. Westport (Conn.): Libraries Unlimited.
Seale, Maura, and Rafia Mirza. 2019. “Empty Presence: Library Labor, Prestige, and the MLS.” Library Trends 68 (2): 252–68. https://doi.org/10.1353/lib.2019.0038.
