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Find information on spaces, staff, and services.
Find information on spaces, staff, and services.
Libraries are dedicated to the principles and practices of social justice, diversity, and equality among our staff, collections, and services. As part of the efforts to further and enable the opportunities for education, benefit the good of the public, and inform citizens, the University of Wisconsin–Madison Libraries commit ourselves to doing our part to end the many forms of discrimination that plague our society. In coordination with campus efforts, the Libraries are moving forward with the approved recommendations for action that were developed as part of the UW–Madison General Library System’s Diversity Task Force Recommendations Report, November 2, 2015.
The UW–Madison Libraries will continue to look for ways to eliminate undue hardship for the patrons who use our collections, services, and facilities. We will continue to work to ensure we provide welcoming and inclusive surroundings for all who wish to take advantage of our spaces and services. Actions meant to hurt, alienate, or divide this community will not be tolerated. We strive to create a safe, welcoming, and inclusive workplace.
The UW–Madison Libraries abide by and support the American Library Association’s (ALA) Bill of Rights. The ALA affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas and that six basic policies should guide their services. A history of the Library Bill of Rights is found in the latest edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual.
Although the Articles of the Library Bill of Rights are unambiguous statements of basic principles that should govern the service of all libraries, questions do arise concerning the application of these principles to specific library practices. See the documents designated by the Intellectual Freedom Committee as Interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights.
For additional information or to contact the Libraries, you are encouraged to email or call 608-262-3193.
The following pages include the signatures of individuals offering their support for this statement, including the Library’s Executive Group and the Library Coordinating Council (LCC).
*The University of Wisconsin-Madison occupies ancestral Ho-Chunk land, a place their nation has called Teejop (day-JOPE) since time immemorial. In an 1832 treaty, the Ho-Chunk were forced to cede this territory. Decades of ethnic cleansing followed when both the federal and state government repeatedly, but unsuccessfully, sought to forcibly remove the Ho-Chunk from Wisconsin. This history of colonization informs our shared future of collaboration and innovation. Today, UW-Madison respects the inherent sovereignty of the Ho-Chunk Nation, along with the eleven other First Nations of Wisconsin.