Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Libraries Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement
We strive to continually educate ourselves on diversity, equity, and inclusion to better support scholars and students representing the full, diverse spectrum of humanity. Diverse and well-reasoned ideas, approaches, and experiences are essential parts of inclusion and equity. University Libraries promotes an environment free from constraint on the basis of race, ethnicity, gender identity and gender expression, age, religion, language, abilities and disabilities, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, geographic region, and more. We follow the lead of diverse communities and aim to mirror the ever-evolving language they use to define themselves.
Libraries Anti-racism Statement
UNC Libraries acknowledges that the University of Northern Colorado sits upon the traditional territories of the Ute, Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Lakota peoples. We also acknowledge and affirm that the United States was founded on white supremacy which has built systematic racism into laws, policies, and practices which impact people of color to this day. We stand in solidarity with communities of color and strive to redress these wrongs.
We aspire to become a truly inclusive and equitable organization. We engage with the university community by sustaining diversity, creating inclusive spaces and experiences, removing barriers to learning, and calling out institutional bias and structural racism.
We are a place for everyone and we will not tolerate mistreatment of anyone.
Action Items
How does change happen? Through a combination of anti-racist actions and policies and as articulated in our values and strategic plan.
Change also happens through the actions and behaviors of our individual faculty and staff. The responsibility for change rests on all of us.
We commit to:
- Enhance our employee recruitment process to be more inclusive
- Develop best practices to continue to create a more inclusive workplace
- Leverage culturally responsive training to better understand systematic and historical oppression and how we can create a more just society
- Offer programs and exhibits that are representative of cultures/nationalities that make up the UNC and surrounding communities
- Work with local communities to expand inclusive archival work and assist in curating collections
- Collect more books by and for Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) and other traditionally minoritized groups
References for Anti-racism Statement
1619 ; a podcast from the New York Times (N. Hannah-Jones Trans.).
Epperson, A. Research guides: DEI & antiracism resources: Home. Retrieved Jun 7, 2021, from https://libguides.unco.edu/DEI-and-Antiracism
Hannah-Jones, N. (2019, 18 August,). The 1619 project. New York Times Magazine, , 4-86.
Office of equity & inclusion - University of Northern Colorado. Retrieved Jun 8, 2021, from https://www.unco.edu/equity-inclusion/index.aspx
Smith, C. (2021). How the word is passed: A reckoning with the history of slavery across America. New York: Little, Brown.
This statement was inspired by many university and library anti-racism/diversity statements, including:
