As Library and Information Science (LIS) practitioners, students and scholars, we are committed to the principles of our field: to the free access to and flow of information and to the intellectual freedom….
As Library and Information Science (LIS) practitioners, students and scholars, we are committed to the principles of our field: to the free access to and flow of information and to the intellectual freedom of all.
As Library and Information Science (LIS) practitioners, students and scholars, we are committed to the principles of our field: to the free access to and flow of information and to the intellectual freedom of all. We are shocked and dismayed by the unilateral decision on the part of Chancellor Phyllis Wise and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Board of Trustees to rescind the employment of Dr. Steven Salaita based on his speech in social media.
We reject what we view as specious reasoning by both the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees for what we recognize as a politically motivated act. We denounce claims to civility that cover for silencing of political speech by members of the campus community. As people dedicated personally and professionally to the free exchange of ideas – particularly those considered challenging or controversial – we call on Chancellor Wise to restore Dr. Salaita’s employment, to respect the faculty governance process by which he was chosen as the most qualified candidate, and to restore the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus to a site where dissenting ideas may find a home.
We call on Chancellor Wise to restore Dr. Salaita’s employment, to respect the faculty governance process by which he was chosen as the most qualified candidate, and to restore the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign campus to a site where dissenting ideas may find a home.
Until the above conditions are met, we, the undersigned, will honor the global call to boycott the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. We will not engage with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, including visiting the campus, providing workshops, attending conferences, delivering talks or lectures, offering services, or co-sponsoring events of any kind.
We look forward to such time as we can return, in good conscience, to our partnerships and relationships with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Until that time, we will honor this boycott; our professional and long-standing commitment to the academic and intellectual freedom of all demands no less.
To join the petition, send a message in the form at the bottom of the page with your name as you wish it to appear, your role (librarian, archivist, practitioner, student, etc.), and your affiliation, if you wish to include them.
*** Denotes UIUC alumni.
Signatories
- Jenna Freedman, Librarian, Barnard College
- Matthew Abraham
- Jonathan Rochkind, MLIS
- Sarah T. Roberts, Ph.D., FIMS, Western University ***
- Karen Whyte ***
- Ellen Belcher, John Jay College/CUNY
- Kathleen DeLaurenti, Librarian
- Kareemah Hamdan, Librarian
- Kira Hall
- Mohammad M. Hamad, The New School
- Melissa Cardenas-Dow, MLIS
- Safiya Noble, Ph.D., University of California at Los Angeles ***
- Hannah Mermelstein, Librarian
- Sarah Morrison, MLIS Candidate, Western University
- Miriam Sweeney, Ph.D. ***
- Lisa Chen, LIS Student, Western University
- Elizabeth Chapman, LIS Student, University of Sheffield (UK)
- Melissa Villa Nichols, Doctoral Candidate, Graduate School of Library and Information Studies (GSLIS), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Colin Rhinesmith, Ph.D., School of Library and Information Studies, University of Oklahoma ***
- Mike L. Marlin, Librarian ***
- Mark Hudson, MLIS, Public Librarian, Pittsburgh
- Jessie English, Archivist ***
- Chris Ritzo, MLIS, Open Technology Institute at the New America Foundation, Washington, D.C. ***
- Mark C. Rosenzweig, Progressive Librarians’ Guild ***
- Kathleen de la Peña McCook, Progressive Librarians’ Guild
- Tonia Sutherland, Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh
- Susan Chute, MLIS, MFA, formerly with the New York Public Library
- Kenny Garcia, LIS Practitioner, California State University, Monterey Bay
- Ann Peterson Kemp, Associate Professor Emerita, University of Illinois
- Helen Linda, Systems & Technical Services Librarian, Goddard College
- Tom Twiss, Ph.D., Librarian, University of Pittsburgh
- Joan Goddard, MLS, San Jose Public Library branch Librarian (retired)
- Kay Mathiesen, Ph.D., School of Information Resources and Library Science, University of Arizona
- Diedre Conkling, Lincoln County Library District, Oregon ***
- Zeineb Yousef, MLIS Candidate, Western University
- Elaine Harger, Librarian, Progressive Librarians’ Guild
- Jim DelRosso, Librarian, Cornell University
- Dave Hudson, Librarian, Unversity of Guelph
- Melissa Morrone, Public Librarian, New York City
- Laura Koltutsky, Librarian, University of Calgary
- Sarah Meuth, MLIS, LIS Practitioner ***
- Andrew Lockhart, Librarian, Progressive Librarians’ Guild
- Roxanne Shirazi, Librarian, The Graduate Center, CUNY
- Vani Natarajan, Librarian, Barnard College
- Anna Swanson, Librarian, Vancouver, BC
- Jessica George, Librarian, Millersville University
- Michael Dudley, Librarian, University of Winnipeg
- Grace Lile, Archivist
- Blair Kuntz, Librarian, University of Toronto
- Gregory Hayes, Information Professional, The Hayes Trust
- Peter Gunther, Religious Archivist, California
- Marni Harrington, Librarian, University of Western Ontario
- Steve Marquardt, Librarian
- rachmattson, Archivist, LaMaMa Archives ***
- Jaime Taylor, Librarian, NYC
- Maggie Schreiner, Archivist, New York University
- Jim Madigan, Public Librarian, Oak Park, IL
- Cindy Lou Poquette, Librarian, Indian River Area Library
- Kel Karpinski, Public Librarian, NYC ***
- Paulette Rothbauer, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Western Ontario
- Martin Wallace, Librarian, University of Maine
- Haneen Odeh, LIS Student, San Jose State University
- Jennifer E. Ryder, MLIS, Librarian, Portland, OR ***
- Michelle Caswell, Ph.D., Faculty, University of California at Los Angeles
- Jada Fey, Librarian ***
- Jason Villani, Reference Librarian, New Britain Public Library, CT
- Lorena S. Neal, J.D., MLIS, UIUC Alumna ***
- Florence Tang, MLIS, Librarian ***
- Linda Nguyễn, MLIS, Information Professional
- Terry D. Moore, MLS, LIS Practitioner, Texas Woman’s University
- Joe Coyle, MLIS Student, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ***
- Christine Schutz, Librarian, The College of Idaho
- D. Keali’i MacKenzie, MLISc, Librarian, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa Center for Pacific Islands Studies
- Ann Matsushima Chiu, MLIS Student, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ***
- Nasser Saleh, Ph.D., MLIS, Librarian, Queen’s University, Canada
- Mohammad A. Auwal, LIS Student
- Don Fallis, Ph.D., Professor, School of Information Resources and Library Science, University of Arizona
- Aliqae Geraci, Librarian, Cornell University
- Miriam Pickens, Librarian, Progressive Librarians’ Guild
- Ruby Lavallee, Librarian, University of Manitoba
- Alycia Sellie, Librarian, The Graduate Center, CUNY
- Andrew Dicks, LIS Student, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
- Karen Gisonny, Librarian, New York
- Anna Lewis, Librarian, School of Education-MERIT, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Joyce M. Latham, Ph.D., Faculty, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee ***
- Christine Pawley, Ph.D., Former Professor and Director, School of Library and Information Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Elizabeth Skene, Librarian, Western Carolina University
- Mark A. Matienzo, LIS Practitioner, Digital Public Library of America
- Cheryl Knott, Ph.D., Faculty, School of Information Resources and Library Science, University of Arizona