When we approach a librarian at a reference desk or anywhere else in the library, do we feel that it’s easier to approach if the librarian looks like us? Is it easier to talk to a librarian who might share the same cultural experiences or who knows that the librarian’s life experience is similar? It’s entirely possible.
Quickly going back to the Bonnet and McAlexander study, Structural Diversity in Academic Libraries: A Study of Librarian Approachability, we see that the authors consider the fact that structural diversity, or the diverse hiring practices within a library system. They write:
While the term “diversity” comprises a wide constellation of experiences, skills, and cultural backgrounds (often termed “invisible diversity”), it also includes external, visible characteristics such as gender, age, and racial/ethnic affiliation.
These identities are part of every librarian, for sure, but they do not constitute the whole picture of approachability, nor of identity as it pertains to hiring practices.
I came across a brief, but important, review of the Bonnet and McAlexander study. In Gender, Race, and Age of Librarians and Users Have an Impact on the Perceived Approachability of Librarians, Dominique Daniel of Michigan’s Oakland University, suggests that the study is fairly accurate in its assessment that “visible demographic characteristics matter in people’s first impressions of librarians.” She agrees that diversity measures, or structural diversity initiatives, are vital to academic (and I would argue, all libraries) libraries in that they provide the user an opportunity to interact with people outside of their usual comfort zone and to challenge their own cultural assumptions. Furthermore, the need for male librarians is great if we are to break the stereotype that librarianship is a woman-dominated profession.
This is an excellent observation from Daniel:
The survey was administered at a Midwestern university, where the ethno-racial makeup and culture are somewhat different from other regions, but the authors offer seemingly uniform, nationwide recommendations about the need for diversity programs.
Indeed, the Midwest can be less racially diverse than the rest of the country, and the world, for that matter. I full-heartedly agree with Daniel that blanket recommendations are problematic. As I see it, library administrations must consider the cultural needs of their library systems, not only engaging in diversity initiatives, but also gearing their programming towards the needs of the community. That is how you bring more people into the library.
Global Perspectives on Librarian Approachability 