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Vocational Awe & Burnout: Building Supportive Communities and Self-Advocacy

Orbis Cascade Alliance, Summer Meeting

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Fobazi M. Ettarh

You can find me at:

@fobettarh
fobaziettarh.com
fobettarh@gmail.com

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Table of Contents

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03

04

02

Who are we as library workers? Who are we outside the library?

What does this mean?

Building Supportive Communities

Identity and Libraries

A Vocation?

Here you could describe the topic of the section

Is librarianship an occupation or vocation?

How do we create communities?

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Before We Begin

This will cause some discomfort. This is a good thing! Embrace it!

Feelings are great, but actions are better!

While we fight to create more equity for our students and patrons, we need to make sure that we ourselves are being advocated and cared for. And so hopefully we are all here ready and willing to open our hearts and minds to topics that might make us uncomfortable. Growth can often be an uncomfortable process. There’s a reason they call it “growing pains” after all. Learning about and deconstructing vocational awe can be especially uncomfortable because it underwrites our whole field and core beliefs. While the stories we tell about ourselves can define us, they can also confine us. These past three (!!!) years and change have been a time of change and upheaval. We still don’t quite know where we as a society will fall, let alone our field. In order to change the way we work, we need to understand how we currently function. That is what I aim to do as with this webinar-identify the true politics of librarianship and OER work, and hopefully change the processes to ones which are healthier for all of us.

Which leads me to my second point, Feel those feelings! They’re valid. But don’t let it stop there. Push through it, and think about how you can start to make changes--in yourself, in your workplace, in your organization. They don’t have to be big changes. In fact, the small changes are sometimes the most impactful. But action is what will move things forward--not feelings.

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Identity and Libraries

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Who are we as library workers? Who are we outside the library?

<a href="https://www.flaticon.com/free-icons/librarian" title="librarian icons">Librarian icons created by Freepik - Flaticon</a>

So, the theme for this conference is, “Community-Collaboration-Change.” And throughout this conference, we will talk about some of the ways that libraries, and academic libraries in particular have connected to their communities and created strong coalitions. But this conference will hopefully also touch on some of the areas of growth that are absolutely necessary for libraries reach all the people we say we allegedly reach. Today I will be talking about vocational awe and the problem with “love what you do.” Vocational awe underpins the narrative of librarianship. While the stories we tell about ourselves can define us, they can also confine us. These past three years and change have been a time of change and upheaval. We still don’t quite know where we as a society will fall, let alone our field. In order to change the way we work, we need to understand how we currently function. That is what I aim to do as we start off this conference-identify our processes and change the way we work to create a new, healthier normal.

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“My friends laugh at me but training to be a professional librarian is a sort of calling - like being a priest…”

“The library will, however, not be the magical place it is to work in (or for patrons to visit) if it is not felt, from the inside, as a vocation. ...the work I do is no longer merely an economic support to my life, but is instead a part of my human flourishing—calling me to overcome myself in the acquisition of new skills, new visions, new understandings, and new ways of healing the world…” -Race MoChridhe

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“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.”

<a href="https://www.flaticon.com/free-icons/family" title="family icons">Family icons created by kliwir art - Flaticon</a>

I’m sure we’ve all heard this quote and all of its variants. The sentiment basically boils down to the idea that love and passion can make anything, even work, feel like play. And because of this love and passion, these ideal workers become successful precisely because they love what they do. To them, their job duties are in fact the most perfect and pleasurable way to spend the hours between 9am and 5pm or whatever their schedule may be. Scholar MIYA TOKUMITSU has written a lot about the “do what you love” framework, and I would encourage checking out their work.

And while it is not a problem to love your job, it is a problem, if that becomes the very foundation of a field the way that vocational awe has become in the field of librarianship.

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Who is Fobazi Michelle Ettarh?

Cis Woman

Queer

Sister

Disabled

Scholar-Activist

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A Vocation?

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Is librarianship an occupation or a vocation?

While technically these two words-occupation and vocation are synonyms there are different connotations for the two. An occupation is the work in which a person is employed; a vocation is a summons or strong inclination to a particular state or course of action--especially : a divine call to the religious life. In many of its earliest uses, a vocation referred to the way one lives in response to God’s call.

So, while you can leave an occupation at home a vocation is forever.

I’m a pastor’s kid. Any PKs in the house? Yeah! There’s always at least one. And so as we PKs know, while you might leave church, church never leaves you--there’s bible studies, religious retreats, even vacation bible school during the summers. So, again I ask--is librarianship an occupation or vocation?

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“Vocational awe describes the set of ideas, values, and assumptions librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in notions that libraries as institutions are inherently good and sacred, and therefore beyond critique.”

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Libraries Are…

Beyond Critique?

Last bastions of democracy, the "soul" of the community

Inherently Sacred?

Holy, otherworldly, awe-inspiring, a safe space, a sanctuary

Inherently Good?

Provide access to all, have diverse collections, champion truth and free speech

...unless they're undesirable.

...for the privileged; those we deem worthy.

…but upholds white supremacy; ignores ‘valid’ critiques.

So let’s break this definition down a little bit…

Unless they’re undesirable--segregation in libraries. Tougaloo 9 as a specific example. In any case, many libraries closed rather than integrate. Or they took away all the furniture to discourage socializing and mixing of groups.

Safe space for those we most want in our libraries--create policies that further marginalize our communities--giving space to Nazis

And if it is beyond critique, simply because it is a stand-in for the concept of democracy, then refusing to address its very real problems will chip away at democracy itself. For instance, we’ve talked about how libraries have upheld white supremacy and left out certain marginalized groups, but even valid critiques about labor practices and the increased demands on the librarians themselves cannot be addressed if the “goodness” of the library is used to render these concerns invisible. In true democracy, no institution should be beyond reproach.

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Commonalities

Associations with religion/ spirituality.

Conflation of building/ workers.

Stand in as democracy/only democratic institution.

Runs on love and passion.

And so what are the commonalities between the do what you love narrative and vocational awe? Well for one, there is definitely a sense of religion and/or spirituality associated with library work. It is seen almost as a faith unto itself. There is also a definite conflation of the library as building and institution vs the library as workers and job duties. Almost as if the two are synonymous. Another commonality is the idea that the library is the only democratic institution left or that the library is synonymous with the concept of democracy. And finally, and perhaps most importantly all of these things are built and ran on love and passion. It is the love of libraries/library work that makes it all of these things-democratic, religious, etc. Without that love there would be no soul or refuge or safe space.

<a href="https://storyset.com/hobby">Illustration by Freepik Storyset</a>

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What does this mean?

03

How does vocational awe affect the workplace?

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Common norms of vocational awe

Work-life Balance/Separation

Pressure to come into the library rain, shine, sickness, etc.

Guilt when taking vacation days or asking for more staff to alleviate pressure.

“You can contact me anytime, I’m always on my email!”

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Common norms of vocational awe

White savior-ing/Job Creep

When those “other duties as assigned” become a regular part of your day to day responsibilities.

Social worker + Accountant + EMT

“The library is everything to everyone!”

The library solves all social ills?

But these jobs that have been creeping up on us, aren’t just traditional library roles. Increasingly, we’re asked to do jobs we were never trained for and maybe would have never wanted. Right now, librarians are being asked to work in homeless shelters and/or turn the library into homeless shelters. In San Francisco, the libraries were turned into day care centers for children of hospital workers. Some are sewing masks and staffing food banks. Across the country, libraries and library workers are being asked to do other duties as assigned-often as a stop-gap for an essential (and non-existent/understaffed) social service. But I don’t want to discount how much white saviordom drives some of this job creep. Dewey in the beginning hired women specifically because they were caretakers and could be paid less. They were also hired to be an “enlightening” force on those who they considered lesser- people from lower classes, and people of color. And the field hasn’t changed much since the days of Dewey. Many of our peers still see their role as an “enlightening” force for the dirty and unwashed masses. And it can be hard not to want to work more and harder to correct the terrible harm that they inflict on our communities.

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The Cycle of Exploitation

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Library Abuse Cycle

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01

Recruitment

A passionate worker is hired by the library.

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Abuse

The worker is put through many types of abuse and low morale experiences.

Burnout

The worker burns out and leaves/retires.

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The Cost of Your Service

Exploitation

Abuse

Death?

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Surviving and Thriving

04

Knowing what we know, how do we move forward?

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—Angela Y. Davis

“You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. And you have to do it all the time.”

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How Do I Start?

Set Boundaries

Communicate with your supervisor(s) about reciprocal expectations.

Set aside time for your life-your loved ones, hobbies, whatever they may be.

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How Do I Start?

Work Collectively

It can be hard to set and stick to something new without help. Whether you are in a unionized place or not, organize with your coworkers to set and maintain a life outside work.

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How Do I Start?

Create Community

Make connections with other librarians outside your university to learn from other perspectives, experiences, and ideas.

Work with other departments on campus doing similar work to strengthen community of practice.

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—Audre Lorde

“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”

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Thanks!

Fobazi M. Ettarh

You can find me at:

@fobettarh

Fobaziettarh.com

fobettarh@gmail.com

CREDITS:

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