Professional Philosophy of Practice
In this statement, I will express my beliefs about the information profession and how I think professionals in this field, like myself, should conduct themselves. As an information professional, there are certain standards we must hold ourselves to when we carry out our work. Some of these standards are outlined in the codes of ethics of our respective professional organizations, like the American Library Association or the Society of American Archivist, while others we must determine for ourselves. While I certainly uphold all the standards set forth by the ALA and SAA, there are certain ethical concerns that I believe are most prescient at this moment in time, particularly objectivity, equitable service, and intellectual freedom.
I believe it is the responsibility of every information professional to try to restrain their personal beliefs and biases while in the performance of their duties. In developing and maintaining our collections, we should not think about what we personally consider appropriate or useful, but instead think about our patron's needs. We must cater our collections to their needs. This sometimes means including materials in our collections that we personally find uninteresting or objectionable. A collection is meant to serve the needs of its users more than its caretakers. Therefore, we must not let our personal feelings alter the way we serve our patrons either.
I believe information professionals must seek to provide the best service to every patron or customer regardless of their race, class, or creed. We cannot be pickers and choosers when it comes to who we serve. Nor should we wish to be. In many ways we live in the most equitable and free period in the history of the world. Yet, there are still people who are suffering across the world as a result of poverty, prejudice, disability, and/or one of numerous other reasons. As information professionals, whether we are working in private or public institutions, I think we should strive to provide the best service to everyone in our communities. We must make it our personal mission to fight against inequality whenever we see it. This especially applies when it comes to information access. Information is very powerful and we must ensure that it is accessible to everyone. That being said, copyright and intellectual property are also important.
I believe it is important for information professionals to uphold copy and intellectual property rights, while also ensuring that there are not unnecessary hurdles in the way of accessing information. We must protect and uphold the tenets of intellectual freedom by pushing back against those who would wish to censor, destroy, or otherwise suppress society's access to information. Where necessary, we should also fight back against frivolous and unnecessary copy and intellectual property restrictions that do nothing but limit the free flow of ideas and information. In all cases, however, we must be steadfast in our resolve to uphold these values and to protect the rights of our patrons and communities.