Minnesota State Library Services, part of Democratic Gov. Tim Walz’s administration, plans to use public funds to pay for a retreat intended exclusively for “BIPOC” librarians, according to documents obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
The Walz administration describes the event, which will take place in October, as “a day of professional development and network-building designed specifically for BIPOC library workers of Minnesota,” according to a registration page. Minnesota will use public funds to cover hotel lodging, meals and other fees for those attending the program, state documents show.
“BIPOC” stands for “black, indigenous and people of color.”
A sign-up form for the event allows those seeking to attend the program to select from an assortment of races and sexualities to describe themselves but “heterosexual” and “white” are notably missing from the options available.
Nicole Cooke, a professor of library and information science at the University of South Carolina, is booked as a keynote speaker for the event, according to an agenda obtained by the DCNF.
Cooke has argued that it is “tantamount to malpractice” to allow students to enter the workforce without first being educated on diversity, equity, inclusion and social justice. In 2017, she received a grant to study “racial microaggressions in libraries,” according to a press release.
The professor has a long history of giving presentations on the importance of center racial justice and diversity when managing libraries, according to her personal website. In 2020, she created an “anti-racism resources for all ages” project which includes a number of materials intended to introduce children to the topic.
“Anti-racism” is part of a framework first coined by left-wing academic Ibram X. Kendi that holds anyone not actively resisting what he defines to be racism is a racist. It is impossible to be neutral on the issue of racism, according to Kendi.
Minnesota State Library Services is directed by Tamara Lee who, according to her LinkedIn profile, is “passionate about early literacy and racial equity in libraries” and has expressed support for Kendi’s idea of anti-racism.
Lee co-authored a 2021 piece in Information Today where she argued that “niceness” is a “tool of white supremacy” because she believes it can be used by racists to absolve themselves of wrongdoing. She argued that librarians must take an active role in educating children on racial activism.
“Children are often aware of race long before we think they are,” Lee wrote. “Starting open and honest conversations with them about race early on can prepare them to be anti-racism practitioners their whole lives.”
The state librarian also wrote a paper in 2016 that advocated for making children’s story time “racially diverse, equitable and inclusive.”
Lee is listed as one of the primary points of contact on documents sharing details about the BIPOC exclusive librarian program. She was also involved in planning the event.
Walz is no stranger to using public resources to hold racially segregated events. His Department of Education held “restorative justice” teacher trainings in 2022 that white educators were explicitly barred from attending. The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs also held trainings intended to alleviate homelessness among veterans but only invited white people to participate if they were willing to serve as a “stakeholder or ally” to non-white and LGBT veterans.
Lee, the Harris campaign, the Minnesota governor’s office and the Minnesota State Library Service did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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