Where Are All the Librarians of Color?: The Experiences of People of Color in Academia

This collection features articles and case studies that address the innumerable issues and challenges faced by people of color working in libraries, both those consciously and subconsciously perpetuated, with a specific focus on minorities—or more significantly, the lack of minorities—in tenure-track positions in academic libraries. Hankins (librarian, Texas A&M Univ.) and Juárez (PhD candidate, Univ. Texas at El Paso) bring together essays that address the historical trends of minority employment before delving into what's being done and what more can be done to address the issue. Chapters offer advice and recommendations along with a critique of programs that are already in place, such as initiatives and grants to attract minorities to MLIS programs, diversity residency programs, and recruitment techniques. The discussion even extends to invaluable mentoring and thoughtful support programs that are continuously shown to increase retention rates of minorities. One essay asks, "Are we there yet?" Though progress has been made, the answer is clearly, no.