Chapter 1: A Brief History of (White) Choices

It has been said that “The most effective regulatory power is self-surveillance” (Davidson & Reddy, 2001), and such is true for many in academic libraries. This autoethnography explores this idea of self-surveillance through white supremacy culture and the history of academic libraries. Utilizing critical race theory, this chapter will describe the context and content for a series of six workshops titled “Cultural Competencies of Tisch Library.” In these workshops, using the history of our own library, I explored with my colleagues how whiteness maintains power in the choices of librarians’ past. Together, we ask, in function, in creation, in culture (in the library and outside it), and within wider systems, what is a library? In each workshop, a particular primary source, such as the 1863 First Annual Report, 1930 Carnegie Standards of Library, and staff newsletters, were paired with a particular white supremacy characteristic. Through immersive conversation, we explored the choices of white men and women in our library’s history, the lines blurred between personal choice and institutional limitations. My reflections on this experience question both the histories and the present academic library cultures.