During outreach this morning, a man said, "You don't look lke a librairan." I just smiled and said, “Yes I know.” What I really want to say was, how does a librarian look?
Ask anyone what image comes to mind when they think of a librarian, and inevitably they'll say an older woman, with her hair in a tight bun, wearing glasses, a cardigan, and sensible/old lady shoes, and she usually says "Shh" a lot. I have also heard the following statements:
- Librarians are old, have gray hair and are boring.
- But you don't look like one!
- You have a Master's Degree?!?
- I didn't know you had to go to school to be a librarian!
- You're too loud to be a librarian.
- You don't dress like a librarian
- I like to read, I should be a librarian too!
- That seems like a boring job.
- You’re so lucky your job is recession proof.
It’s amazing how many people make comments with and without thinking! A little advice, the next time you meet me, please DO NOT say any of the previous statements, or I’ll have to shush you.
2 comments:
I also have heard "you need to get a degree for that?", and "that's great that you're going to be a librarian it's easy to find a job", I don't know how I feel about these statements. Don't people want professionals working at the libraray? Also, the obviously don't read the paper because the library is the first thing to get cut in a recession! I liked your last line of this post also.
I find it so strange that people think that working in a library is a boring job. I actually think that we should make a reality show based on the craziness that happens at the lib with alarming regularity.
I guess the good side of hearing about the stereotype (all the time, I feel like) is it's an opportunity to explicitly knock it down. Every day, one patron at a time...
Post a Comment