A statement from the Guild Executive Board:
In recent months, plans for modifications to the Library of Congress’s Main Reading Room (MRR) and the Control Room below it have generated public scrutiny, and new controversy (see links below). In particular, plans to remove portions of the MRR Center Desk to create an oculus (window) in the floor as part of a ground-level “Orientation Gallery” have raised broad concerns about preserving the MRR and Jefferson Building’s architectural integrity, as well as the MRR’s primary function as a premier research space.
The Library of Congress Professional Guild, AFSCME 2910, comprises Library of Congress professional staff across a wide range of disciplines including reference librarians, catalogers, archivists, curators, conservators, and IT specialists. We support and encourage open and meaningful dialogue between staff and management on issues of central importance to our work, and to the mission of the Library of Congress. We feel it is essential in moments of significant change.
Content of the Library’s “Visitor Experience Master Plan” as shared by the Library with the public, and with staff, has been fragmentary and changing over several years. Given the current controversy, everyone needs an opportunity to review and understand the comprehensive plan and its many implications—for staff, for researchers, for Congress, and for the public.
We believe that a broad array of Library of Congress professional staff, individually and through the Guild, can make valuable contributions to the ongoing discussions and plans. There is still time for the Library to engage with all LC stakeholders in an ongoing and meaningful way.
There is still time for the Library to listen to staff, including the employees who work in the Main Reading Room and its adjacent spaces, to arrive at optimal solutions for LC’s users. The best solutions will be those that fully address the needs of our current research patrons while inspiring all visitors within our spaces toward greater future engagement with the Library. The best solutions will also be those that embrace the full spirit of historic preservation by fully sustaining the remarkable legacy of the Library of Congress for generations to come.
Guild (AFSCME 2910) Executive Board:
Anne Toohey, President
David Fernández-Barrial, Chief Steward
Rosemary Brawner
Jacqueline Coleburn
Susan Garfinkel
Michelle Graddy
Manoj Gupta
Adam Friedman
Mark Hall
Darren Jones
Catherine O’Connor
Foster Reding
Links:
- DC Preservation League, “Library of Congress Main Reading Room Tops List of Most Endangered Places in Washington, DC!”, June 2022.
- Peggy McGlone, “Preservationists Say Library of Congress Makeover Plan is ‘Vandalism’”, The Washington Post, July 18, 2022.
- April Slayton “A New Vision for an Inspiring Location”, Library of Congress Blog, July 18, 2022.
- Guild, “A National Treasure at Risk?”, July 22, 2022.
- Peggy McGlone, “Library of Congress Launches Internal Probe of Controversial Remodel”, The Washington Post, August 31, 2022.
