President’s Perspective

By Mary Woodard

At the time of this writing, I have just finished a whirlwind of travel around the state attending most of the TLA Districts’ fall meetings and the 2022 TALL Texans Leadership Institute. At these wonderful events, I have been inspired by librarians of all types, with varied experiences, who live all over the state. While we have many differences, I was constantly reminded of how much we, as librarians, have in common. We are all committed to the core values of librarianship, including the freedom to read and use information that helps us think critically and make informed decisions. We are committed to providing access to credible sources and digital equity. We are all working towards the common purpose of providing knowledge, information, and services that enhance individual growth and benefit our local communities.

There is no better time to remember this common purpose than now when we are only a few short weeks away from a new legislative session. If past headlines are any indication, this session will prove to be one of the most difficult and contentious for libraries in recent memory. There are organized political groups throughout the state whose members are determined to rebuild library collections and services in their own image, not in the image of the diverse individuals that live in our communities and attend our academic institutions. In the past year, we have seen school librarians accused of providing pornographic materials to students and had their credibility and ability to select appropriate materials questioned by elected officials. In our public libraries, we have had complaints not only about materials, but also about library displays. In some places, our academic librarians were forced to give up their tenure if they wanted to continue working as librarians. Our profession as a whole is under attack.

TLA staff, the Executive Board, unit officers, and Texans for the Right to Read leaders have been working hard to respond to all of these situations and will continue to do so by sharing statements such as The Freedom to Read Is a Right That Must Be Protected and TLA’s Response to Governor's Proposed

Parental Bill of Rights, holding collaborative discussions with other associations, providing committee and board testimony, sending letters to government agencies, participating in press interviews, writing editorials, and making social media posts. While much has already been done, there is still more to accomplish and it will take all of us to do it.

How can you help? Here’s what we can all do:

Stay informed. Open and read those emails from TLA.

Be sure that you are getting emails from TLA Engage, which has taken the place of our old listserv system.

Training resources on how to set up your profile and email preferences can be found at https://txla.org/tla-engage/.

Connect with legislators. Offer to be a resource for them on library issues. Follow them on social media and subscribe to their newsletters. Let them know when something impacts us as their constituents.

Connect with other librarians. Share information about legislation that affects libraries. Not all librarians are TLA members. Don’t assume that everyone already knows.

Respond to calls for action from TLA. Make a phone call, send an email or both.

The groups that are working against libraries and librarians are organized and LOUD. If we are going to prevail, we have to be louder and stronger. We have to be unified in our advocacy for all types of libraries, remembering that an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us. Together we can make a difference for libraries that benefits the people of Texas.

Mary Woodard 2022-2023 TLA President