The American Library Association has elected City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate Center librarian and self-proclaimed “Marxist lesbian” Emily Drabinski as its president for the 2022-23 term.
“I just cannot believe that a Marxist lesbian who believes that collective power is possible to build and can be wielded for a better world is the president-elect of [the American Library Association],” Drabinski tweeted on April 13.
“I am so excited for what we will do together. Solidarity!” Drabinski added.
I just cannot believe that a Marxist lesbian who believes that collective power is possible to build and can be wielded for a better world is the president-elect of @ALALibrary. I am so excited for what we will do together. Solidarity!
And my mom is SO PROUD I love you mom.
— Emily Drabinski (@edrabinski) April 13, 2022
Drabinski’s “vision” for the American Library Association is to build and use the “collective power” of its members to pursue a host of left-wing political issues, according to her website.
“The consequences of decades of unchecked climate change, class war, white supremacy, and imperialism have led us here,” Drabinski said. “If we want a world that includes public goods like the library, we must organize our collective power and wield it.”
“The American Library Association offers us a set of tools that can harness our energies and build those capacities,” she added.
Drabinski also claimed that the “consequences of climate change” are a threat to libraries, and proposed a “Green New Deal for libraries” as part of her platform:
Floods, hurricanes, wildfires, and other consequences of climate change threaten libraries, library workers, and library publics around the world. We must build on recent association work in this area and connect to broader public legislation in order to preserve libraries and communities for an uncertain future.
The new American Library Association president also promised to develop a “global vision of librarianship in which international cooperation and exchange are central to equity and justice,” insisting, “our solutions must be international too,” and calling for “cooperation beyond our borders.”
“I will direct resources and opportunities to a diverse cross section of the association and advance a public agenda that puts organizing for justice at the center of library work,” Drabinski said.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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