In "2.0: Where are the Women?" Karen Schneider says that, "we just don't have enough women engaged in key discussions of the day." It is rather ironic that a female-dominated profession has a disproportionate number of males in leadership positions.
Actually, there is so much that doesn't quite make sense. Take a look at the following and let me know if you think being a male librarian is a (dis)advantage:
"Being An Anomaly: Male Librarians" by Marylaine Block (Ex Libris, 20 July 2001)
Actually, there is so much that doesn't quite make sense. Take a look at the following and let me know if you think being a male librarian is a (dis)advantage:
"Being An Anomaly: Male Librarians" by Marylaine Block (Ex Libris, 20 July 2001)
If you don't have much time, this short article presents most of the important points that should be considered in this case of the minority being over-represented in many ways."The Men Among Us" by Rachel Singer Gordon (Library Journal, 15 June 2004)
This article provides statistics and the points of view of the male librarians themselves. My favorite: "...patrons tend to assume male librarians are supervisors. Patrons, Gee notes, 'automatically treat us as if we are in charge.'"
"Moving past stereotypes" by Emma Downs (Fort Wayne Gazette, 2006)
Categories: Librarians, Stereotypes
This one takes a look at the bigger picture, and makes the point that "'pink collar' careers like librarians, nurses and social workers aren’t known for their high pay or prestige." So why are men taking on these jobs? A male librarian and a male nurse tell their stories."CNY has few male library teachers" by Sapna Kollali (Post-Standard, 11 June 2006) (via Infomancy)
The guy is "jumping around in the stacks or talking much too loudly from the top of a bookcase... [but] don't worry. Lykling is not one of the bad kids. He runs the place." He's the anti-stereotype. And he's a children's librarian."Mr. Lady: The male librarian" by Randy Gatley (Winter 2003-2004)
A library student at the University of British Columbia takes a humorous—with matching pastel colors—but scholarly look at the facts and the literature about male librarians."The male librarian" by Layne Foit and Bob Kittle (2002)
It's a literature review, but it includes the results of a survey conducted among male MLIS students at the University of Washington. I did not see any study like this while I was studying or teaching at the University of the Philippines. If any of my former students are reading this, I think this will be an interesting thesis topic =)Library: An Unquiet History by Matthew Battles (2003)
Men were the first librarians, but did you know that Melvil Dewey allowed women to enroll in his classes at a time when it was just not done? Nope, it's not because he was a feminist, but because he "actually used the admittance of women... to the same end he used their hiring in the library: to define the profession down" (p. 144).
Categories: Librarians, Stereotypes
