accessible and easy to follow. “The materials produced for REVEAL can be used by anyone who wishes to advocate for libraries, so I’m hoping library cam- paigners, as well as the workforce, might be able to take them on and use them,” says David. “The videos are designed to be utilised in any way that is useful; they can be followed through from the first to last, or just dipped into thematically. Similarly, the literature review is organised in dis- tinct sections and does not need to be read through in full if the reader simply wishes to study up on one element.”
That approach of dipping in and out of the guidance, allows for users to take a flexible approach and to build their knowledge and understanding at a pace that suits them. The key aim is for people to feel comfortable and confident about how they can frame their advocacy through the prism of ethics and professional values.
David says that there are some quick
wins, which will help develop that under- standing of how advocacy and values are connected, adding: “I’d encourage readers to read the section or watch the video on advocacy and rhetoric, as this provides tools such as the Scale of Resistance I mentioned earlier. The final video of the series discusses this in terms of applying to libraries, so a quick fix might be videos one and 10.
“For instance, REVEAL includes discus- sion of a tool called the Scale of Resistance, proposed by Ramage, Bean, and Johnson (2007) which gives you a framework for advance thinking about objections to potentially controversial initiatives that a library might decide to implement. In the REVEAL materials I show it utilised in advocacy for Drag Queen Story Hours, and being able to consider in advance the objec- tions you might encounter, and how to think about how these might be engaged with. “I’d hope both REVEAL and Safe and Inclusive Places become important tools for empowering the profession in advocacy and dealing with controversy.” It’s important to remember that values and ethics do not sit in isolation – they may not always be front of mind, but they underpin the practice of the information professions, as well as the theory. CILIP’s ethical framework, for example, is a cen- tral tenet of the work it does to support members and the wider profession. David believes that this connection to professional ethics and values is an impor- tant aspect of the profession, and as such should be part of discussions around advo- cacy. The tools developed for the REVEAL project help to give people the confidence to talk about that connection and the role of values and ethics in relation to their own advocacy work. All the resources, including a series of online videos and printable infographics, are designed to be
36 INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL
“The infographics could be very useful to print out and place in libraries, as they include Ranganathan’s five laws of library science, as well as Gorman’s enduring values. As posters for the workplace, or even inside
the public part of library buildings, these could be very easy to implement quick wins that could provide daily reinforce- ments of library values.”
There is a section entitled “How to do value driven advocacy”, and David says: “That is the final part of the materials that brings together all of the materials to form some suggestions for how to go about it. In terms of easy wins, a lot is based on how we pre-plan things, from policies on stock development, to advocacy programmes. The techniques discussed in the outputs give some advice and guidance on how to think about ethics and values-based advocacy in advance.
“The techniques discussed also provide useful information on how to counter different types of arguments you might receive in objection to materials or activities, so that content might be a useful thing for the workforce to dip into for advice.” You can find out more about CILIP’s Managing Safe and Inclusive Public Library Spaces: A practical guide at www.
cilip.org.uk/safe-and-inclusive-guide. All the resources created for the REVEAL Project are free to access and use, thanks to fund- ing from CILIPS. You can access all the material at
www.cilips.org.uk/reveal. IP
References
Asheim, L. (1953) Not Censorship, But Selection. Wilson Library Bulletin. 28 (September), pp.63-67. Available from:
https://www.ala.org/advocacy/intfreedom/NotCen- sorshipButSelection
Ramage, J. D., Bean, J. C., & Johnson, J. (2007). Writ- ing Arguments: A Rhetoric with Readings. 7th edition. Pearson Longman.
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