owlbear librarian @ burnout
@owlbearlibrarian.bsky.social
Academic library worker, anthropologist, and MSLIS-in-progress. Posting about #CripLib, higher ed, precarity, and library labor. And maybe sometimes ttrpgs.
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
It’s worth resharing the #CripLib open letter in response to this since the Editor did not address any of our substantive concerns about the lack of academic rigor in the anti-DEI privacy of thought article: acrlog.org/2025/05/27/o...
July 18, 2025 at 10:12 PM
It’s worth resharing the #CripLib open letter in response to this since the Editor did not address any of our substantive concerns about the lack of academic rigor in the anti-DEI privacy of thought article: acrlog.org/2025/05/27/o...
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
"When sensory inclusion efforts are absent from the design and modification of academic library environments, neurodivergent people and those with sensory sensitivities are left feeling unwelcome in these library spaces..." #AcademicLibraries #Accessibility #CripLib
The need for sensory inclusion in academic libraries
Sensory inclusion is an oft-forgotten aspect of accessibility in academic library spaces. When sensory inclusion efforts are absent from the design and modification of academic library environments...
doi.org
September 9, 2025 at 6:33 PM
"When sensory inclusion efforts are absent from the design and modification of academic library environments, neurodivergent people and those with sensory sensitivities are left feeling unwelcome in these library spaces..." #AcademicLibraries #Accessibility #CripLib
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Ableist ivory towers: a narrative review informing about the lived experiences of neurodivergent staff in contemporary higher education
⬇️
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
#Neurodivergent
#Neurodiversity
#Employment
#Workplace
#HiddenDisability
#CripLib
#HE
#Academia
⬇️
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
#Neurodivergent
#Neurodiversity
#Employment
#Workplace
#HiddenDisability
#CripLib
#HE
#Academia
Ableist ivory towers: a narrative review informing about the lived experiences of neurodivergent staff in contemporary higher education
Neurodivergence is currently underrepresented among staff in higher education. Acknowledging such underrepresentation, this narrative review critically explores the experiences of neurodivergent ac...
www.tandfonline.com
September 25, 2025 at 9:56 AM
Ableist ivory towers: a narrative review informing about the lived experiences of neurodivergent staff in contemporary higher education
⬇️
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
#Neurodivergent
#Neurodiversity
#Employment
#Workplace
#HiddenDisability
#CripLib
#HE
#Academia
⬇️
www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1...
#Neurodivergent
#Neurodiversity
#Employment
#Workplace
#HiddenDisability
#CripLib
#HE
#Academia
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
The second time I've heard of a school doing this. The other was Mason City School District in Iowa. Wouldn't be surprised if there were more instances of this. pen.org/press-releas...
September 30, 2025 at 3:50 PM
The second time I've heard of a school doing this. The other was Mason City School District in Iowa. Wouldn't be surprised if there were more instances of this. pen.org/press-releas...
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
i think the point i often want to make is not that people shouldn’t be alarmed or scared, fear is a very reasonable response to what’s happening.
more, i want folks to see fascist pronouncements as they are: battle plans, not accomplished facts, and as such reveal opportunities for resistance.
more, i want folks to see fascist pronouncements as they are: battle plans, not accomplished facts, and as such reveal opportunities for resistance.
September 30, 2025 at 4:17 PM
i think the point i often want to make is not that people shouldn’t be alarmed or scared, fear is a very reasonable response to what’s happening.
more, i want folks to see fascist pronouncements as they are: battle plans, not accomplished facts, and as such reveal opportunities for resistance.
more, i want folks to see fascist pronouncements as they are: battle plans, not accomplished facts, and as such reveal opportunities for resistance.
perhaps one of my favorite things about getting a library degree (besides, you know, getting to organize shit) is that i get to be excited about anthropology again, i get to study all the things i wasn't able to study before due of the niche focus of my phd + ongoing hostile environment trauma
September 30, 2025 at 4:35 PM
perhaps one of my favorite things about getting a library degree (besides, you know, getting to organize shit) is that i get to be excited about anthropology again, i get to study all the things i wasn't able to study before due of the niche focus of my phd + ongoing hostile environment trauma
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Eugenics was the explicit reason for creating gifted & talented programs and tracking in schools.
It shows up in everything from school rankings to standardized tests to the tenure process.
It shows up in everything from school rankings to standardized tests to the tenure process.
They always have.
Eugenics, especially in educated and wealthy American circles, never died out after WWII. And there is no more environment more fertile for a true resurgence than Silicon Valley. People who think they are gods gift to the world, untrammeled by conscience, ethics or reality, really
Eugenics, especially in educated and wealthy American circles, never died out after WWII. And there is no more environment more fertile for a true resurgence than Silicon Valley. People who think they are gods gift to the world, untrammeled by conscience, ethics or reality, really
Apparently, Silicon Valley thinks eugenics is the only way to save humanity from AI-fueled extinction. They insist their eugenics isn't bad eugenics, because theirs involves parents choosing to screen and selectively implant embryos based on genetically predicted IQ. But choice is a slippery slope.
August 16, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Eugenics was the explicit reason for creating gifted & talented programs and tracking in schools.
It shows up in everything from school rankings to standardized tests to the tenure process.
It shows up in everything from school rankings to standardized tests to the tenure process.
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
It’s no secret that AI models—including gen AI—tend to discriminate against racial and gender minorities. When government agencies start using biased AI to make decisions, real people suffer. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
President Trump’s War on “Woke AI” Is a Civil Liberties Nightmare
The White House’s recently-unveiled “AI Action Plan” wages war on so-called “woke AI”—including large language models (LLMs) that provide information inconsistent with the administration’s views on
www.eff.org
August 16, 2025 at 2:57 PM
It’s no secret that AI models—including gen AI—tend to discriminate against racial and gender minorities. When government agencies start using biased AI to make decisions, real people suffer. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Stop trying to justify AI by arguing "well librarians opposed Wikipedia back in the day too."
They aren't the same thing.
Thread 📚
They aren't the same thing.
Thread 📚
If something is incorrect on Wikipedia, it can be sourced, traced, disputed, fixed.
If it's wrong in the LLM, it's just...wrong. It's not a fact explicitly stored somewhere, it's just a string of words generated by a probability map
If it's wrong in the LLM, it's just...wrong. It's not a fact explicitly stored somewhere, it's just a string of words generated by a probability map
August 16, 2025 at 3:53 PM
Stop trying to justify AI by arguing "well librarians opposed Wikipedia back in the day too."
They aren't the same thing.
Thread 📚
They aren't the same thing.
Thread 📚
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Book is finally out in the world! Buy a copy for your comrades? And your haters? alastore.ala.org/oryrlib
August 3, 2025 at 12:53 AM
Book is finally out in the world! Buy a copy for your comrades? And your haters? alastore.ala.org/oryrlib
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Fobazi has given so much to our profession and has fearlessly spoken truth to power on a variety of critically important issues that impact the well-being of library workers. Please contribute if you can and think healing thoughts for her.
Fobazi is currently in the ICU and could use your support. Apologies to those I haven’t been able to reach out to yet. You can message me for more info and I will be posting updates to GoFundMe. Please share, send healing thoughts, prayers, etc. ❤️ -Elena
gofund.me/c8485b58
gofund.me/c8485b58
Donate to Fobazi’s road to recovery: Kidney and liver transplant, organized by Ysabel Gerrard
Hello all, my name is Ysabel and I’m fundraising for my friends … Ysabel Gerrard needs your support for Fobazi’s road to recovery: Kidney and liver transplant
gofund.me
August 7, 2025 at 7:56 PM
Fobazi has given so much to our profession and has fearlessly spoken truth to power on a variety of critically important issues that impact the well-being of library workers. Please contribute if you can and think healing thoughts for her.
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
NYC Folks, Megan has gifted us with another zine. I distributed over 500 copies of their NYC primary guide zine and so many people were grateful to have it. I am going to print 1000 copies of this to distribute.
It’s live! My new zine “How to Report ICE and Help Keep Our Neighbors Safe” is available in NYC and a Philly editions!! You can download and print both from here: drive.google.com/drive/folder... **Be sure to set your printer settings to print the zine at 100%!**
August 14, 2025 at 10:08 PM
NYC Folks, Megan has gifted us with another zine. I distributed over 500 copies of their NYC primary guide zine and so many people were grateful to have it. I am going to print 1000 copies of this to distribute.
i ended up mostly spending the summer no thoughts head empty for health reasons, but the new semester at work starts next week, and the new semester at library school starts the week after. acrl volunteering already started a bit. i will be dragged kicking and screaming back into professional life 💀
August 15, 2025 at 2:41 AM
i ended up mostly spending the summer no thoughts head empty for health reasons, but the new semester at work starts next week, and the new semester at library school starts the week after. acrl volunteering already started a bit. i will be dragged kicking and screaming back into professional life 💀
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Fresh off the bepresses - @jjpionke.bsky.social and @schomj.bsky.social interview Crip Kinship author Shayda Kafai!
[downloadable audio and transcript]
#CripLib #DisabilityJustice
[downloadable audio and transcript]
#CripLib #DisabilityJustice
Interview with Dr. Shayda Kafai on Crip Kinship
JJ Pionke and Jess Schomberg interview Shayda Kafai about her book Crip Kinship, how to improve the peer review process to be care-full, and the importance of art and creative works.
cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu
July 21, 2025 at 2:51 PM
Fresh off the bepresses - @jjpionke.bsky.social and @schomj.bsky.social interview Crip Kinship author Shayda Kafai!
[downloadable audio and transcript]
#CripLib #DisabilityJustice
[downloadable audio and transcript]
#CripLib #DisabilityJustice
do not obey in advance
August 15, 2025 at 2:30 AM
do not obey in advance
really great thread from my friend on how to push back against the proposed FDA COVID vaccine regulations. only two days left to comment! if you're immunocompromised public-facing staff like me, a huge drop in vaccination rates is going have a huge impact.
New Your Local Epidemiologist on the shift in COVID-19 vaccine recommendations in USA, how the new policy is being made by two political appointees and bypassing the VRBPAC and ACIP bodies. yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/covid-19-v...
Covid-19 vaccines, what just happened at the FDA, and why it matters
This is not how vaccine policy should be made.
yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com
May 22, 2025 at 12:38 AM
really great thread from my friend on how to push back against the proposed FDA COVID vaccine regulations. only two days left to comment! if you're immunocompromised public-facing staff like me, a huge drop in vaccination rates is going have a huge impact.
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
unconscionable.
BREAKING: President Donald Trump abruptly fires Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden.
The dismissal was disclosed in statements from three top House Democrats and confirmed by a separate person familiar with the matter.
The dismissal was disclosed in statements from three top House Democrats and confirmed by a separate person familiar with the matter.
President Donald Trump fires Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden
President Donald Trump has abruptly fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden as the White House continues to purge the federal government of those perceived to oppose the president and his agenda.
bit.ly
May 9, 2025 at 10:52 AM
unconscionable.
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
It can be hard to find information on gender affirming care in language that is easy to understand. We’ve got you covered with our resource “A Self-Advocate’s Guide to Gender Affirming Health Care,” available in plain language and Easy Read: autisticadvocacy.org/resources/pr...
Proud and Supported Series - Autistic Self Advocacy Network
Definitions and Beyond There are many ways to identify. Everyone is different and that's good! This guide, “Definitions and Beyond,” will explain some of the ways people identify. Maybe you are…
autisticadvocacy.org
May 8, 2025 at 12:00 AM
It can be hard to find information on gender affirming care in language that is easy to understand. We’ve got you covered with our resource “A Self-Advocate’s Guide to Gender Affirming Health Care,” available in plain language and Easy Read: autisticadvocacy.org/resources/pr...
every time i think surely ai could not get any worse than it already is...some techbro manages to dig even deeper into the pit
April 27, 2025 at 6:31 PM
every time i think surely ai could not get any worse than it already is...some techbro manages to dig even deeper into the pit
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
Honestly, the most shocking thing about this debacle is the fact that the IRB approved this and said it would cause “minimal harm.”
The mods of r/ChangeMyView shared the sub was the subject of a study to test the persuasiveness of LLMs & that they didn't consent. There’s a lot that went wrong, so here’s a 🧵 unpacking it, along with some ideas for how to do research with online communities ethically. tinyurl.com/59tpt988
From the changemyview community on Reddit
Explore this post and more from the changemyview community
tinyurl.com
April 27, 2025 at 1:53 AM
Honestly, the most shocking thing about this debacle is the fact that the IRB approved this and said it would cause “minimal harm.”
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
They keep insisting there are good use cases for LLMs, but none of them rise to the level of "this is so important it justifies breaking copyright, destroying the environment, and paying people in the Global South $1 a day to data train the worst parts out."
I dunno, man, the "you guys are being too mean to the plagiarism machines that stole all your work and were created to try to replace you so rich people don't pay you a tiny fraction of their wealth for it" posters popping up are pretty funny
April 27, 2025 at 2:43 PM
They keep insisting there are good use cases for LLMs, but none of them rise to the level of "this is so important it justifies breaking copyright, destroying the environment, and paying people in the Global South $1 a day to data train the worst parts out."
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
As attacks on libraries, books, and library patrons and workers continue to be on the rise across the country, two new resources from our co-founder @prisonculture.bsky.social, about criminalization of and in libraries, to provide some helpful context, information, and inspiration for resistance: ⬇️
April 24, 2025 at 9:24 PM
As attacks on libraries, books, and library patrons and workers continue to be on the rise across the country, two new resources from our co-founder @prisonculture.bsky.social, about criminalization of and in libraries, to provide some helpful context, information, and inspiration for resistance: ⬇️
Reposted by owlbear librarian @ burnout
New Disability in Library & Information Studies (DisLIS) Journal Seeking Submissions! cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/dislis/
We are actively recruiting media reviews (books, movies, etc.) of works that have disability as a major component, from people who have experience with that disability.
#criplib 📚
We are actively recruiting media reviews (books, movies, etc.) of works that have disability as a major component, from people who have experience with that disability.
#criplib 📚
Disability in Libraries and Information Studies (DisLIS) | Journals | Minnesota State University, Mankato
<p><i>Disability in Libraries and Information Studies (DisLIS) </i> is an open access, multimedia journal run by information professionals who work in various types of information-oriented jobs. All m...
cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu
April 25, 2025 at 6:21 PM
New Disability in Library & Information Studies (DisLIS) Journal Seeking Submissions! cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/dislis/
We are actively recruiting media reviews (books, movies, etc.) of works that have disability as a major component, from people who have experience with that disability.
#criplib 📚
We are actively recruiting media reviews (books, movies, etc.) of works that have disability as a major component, from people who have experience with that disability.
#criplib 📚
i stopped pursuing formal diagnosis a while ago, but this is more than terrifying and the implications go far beyond autism. working out a little bit of damage control for myself and immediate loved ones 😩
We're learning more about NIH's plans for Secy Kennedy's new autism studies
NIH Director Bhattacharya says they're amassing a swath of confidential medical data to link together for first time, ranging from broader access to CMS records to smartwatch data
www.cbsnews.com/news/rfk-jr-...
NIH Director Bhattacharya says they're amassing a swath of confidential medical data to link together for first time, ranging from broader access to CMS records to smartwatch data
www.cbsnews.com/news/rfk-jr-...
RFK Jr.'s autism study to amass medical records of many Americans
The autism study is planning to link confidential data "with broad coverage in the U.S. population" in one place for the first time.
www.cbsnews.com
April 22, 2025 at 12:43 AM
i stopped pursuing formal diagnosis a while ago, but this is more than terrifying and the implications go far beyond autism. working out a little bit of damage control for myself and immediate loved ones 😩
i did not think in 2025 i would still encounter terms like "functionally diverse" used in disability contexts, that we would still need to talk about why we need a unified political banner to work towards justice
functionally diverse is reductive terminology +
functionally diverse is reductive terminology +
April 20, 2025 at 11:01 PM
i did not think in 2025 i would still encounter terms like "functionally diverse" used in disability contexts, that we would still need to talk about why we need a unified political banner to work towards justice
functionally diverse is reductive terminology +
functionally diverse is reductive terminology +